We are pleased to share the IT Schools Africa Annual Review 2020-2021 showcasing our work and impact in Africa and the UK. 
“Despite the extraordinary challenges of operating during the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, IT Schools Africa (ITSA) continued to successfully support its programmes in Africa and the UK, its focus, as always, to transform lives by improving digital access.”
Lucy Pollock General Manager
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Our year in numbers - Africa 
Our programmes in Africa help to improve the teaching of digital training for teachers and the skills and experience of students learning ICT at school. ​We are proud to have positively impacted so many students through digital education to enable life opportunities.  

Our year in numbers - UK
Our work in the UK, specifically in Gloucestershire, to improve digital access and skills locally has been very successful. Working with Cheltenham Borough Council and GCHQ, ITSA supported their No Child Left Behind campaign to supply laptops to primary and secondary schools to ensure pupils had access to a computer for home study. 

Helping our local community to use technology
DigiBus is our digital inclusion project that's helping people of all ages improve their digital skills for better life and work opportunities. The DigiBus ‘mobile learning experience’ is a converted double-decker bus, packed with digital technology, travelling around the whole of Gloucestershire, as it visits community venues and town centres providing free digital support and workshops. 

We are pleased to see increasing numbers of learners benefiting from DigiBus; over 650 visitors have now benefited from the service and had help to improve their digital skills since the DigiBus began. We are supporting a wide range of needs; from booking virtual appointments with the GP, setting up an email address, accessing online public services and an introduction to robotics and virtual reality! 

“An elderly gentleman, 96 year old ‘Tom’ came to the DigiBus to learn how to use his Smart Phone. Many years ago Tom was responsible for placing the first computers into schools in Gloucestershire. Today, after his visit to the DigiBus Tom is not only mastering his phone, but he knows all about what is involved in programming miniature robots, along with what VR (Virtual Reality) goggles can do. A huge leap in learning!”
​Taff, DigiBus Project Manager 

​DigiBus is currently visiting Gloucester and heading to Dursley, Chalford and  Stroud community venues in April. Then it will begin its second tour of the county and returning to the Forest of Dean. 

Our DigiBus IT trainers and volunteers are providing personalised one-to-one sessions helping people with technology.  Learning how to order prescriptions, setting up mobile banking apps and finding out how to use social networks to ease isolation are just some of the many things we can help with. Learners can book a one-to-one session with the IT trainer or alternatively anyone can drop in between 10.00am and 3.00pm.
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Please get in touch if you would like to host DigiBus at your community centre, volunteer on DigiBus, partner with DigiBus or find out more, we want to hear from you!
Please email digibus@itschoolsafrica.org

Our Teacher Training Programme is helping to improve the quality of digital education throughout schools in Zambia.  The training course is designed to improve teachers’ digital skills proficiency and students' learning. Despite many challenges, including teacher strikes and further Covid-related school closures, we are delighted to have successfully trained over 220 teachers in Zambia since the beginning of 2021.

The training will help both ICT and non-ICT teachers as it provides an in-depth practical study of computers and how to use them effectively. We want to ensure teachers within all subject areas are able to promote and encourage students to use technology, as well as making lessons more fun and interactive!

“It helped me enhance my skills in using ICT's in our school. Through this training my confidence has grown”  Teacher, Chiawa, Lusaka Province
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“I learnt skills about how to use the computer correctly and effectively, and how helpful the computer is in our daily lives. Furthermore, I gained skills about how to use Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint presentations.”  Teacher, Kitwe, Copperbelt Province

If your school or business would like to support our  teacher training project please get in touch. Email jenny@itschoolsafrica.org

Helping our local community to use technology
We are delighted to see increasing numbers of visitors coming on-board and getting help with technology; from help installing the NHS app, to emailing important documents, to an introduction to robotics and virtual reality! The Digibus provides a free service for anyone who needs digital support, we’ve had visitors of nursery age to over 80 year olds. Our DigiBus IT trainers and volunteers are providing personalised one-to-one sessions helping people get to grips with technology. 

Digibus is visiting sites in Cheltenham throughout February, see the Digibus schedule here Followed by Tewkesbury in March, then Cotswolds and Stroud area. Then it will begin its second tour of the county, starting from the Forest of Dean.

Digibus is open Tuesday to Friday from 10am to 3.30pm for 1 to 1 sessions, although this may change as the weather gets warmer.  We recommend anyone visiting brings along their own phone/tablet/laptop if they have a particular issue specific to their device. 
Please get in touch if you would like to;
- Host DigiBus at your community centre
- Organise a group workshop on DigiBus
- Partner with DigiBus or find out more.
Please call 07878 250 111 or email digibuspm@itschoolsafrica.org to find out more or book a free session.

We are really pleased to announce that we have reached another milestone - receiving and processing over 110,000 donated computers and laptops in the UK and saving them from landfill. It only seems like yesterday we were celebrating the fact that we had crossed the 100,000 milestone!

This is a tremendous achievement especially given the COVID situation and we are so grateful to all our donors for their support. Without these computers and laptops we would not be able to continue and develop our programmes in both Africa and the UK to enable people access to IT. Your donations of IT equipment have meant that we have helped millions of schoolchildren in Africa and many thousands in Gloucestershire improve their IT skills and bridge the digital divide.  

Thanks to the generosity of our wonderful supporters we have exceeded our Big Give #ChristmasChallenge21 target and raised £20,744. That's £9,670 in donations, plus £9,670 matching funds plus Gift Aid - for our teacher training programme in Zimbabwe. We are delighted and overwhelmed with the support we have had over the last week, raising more than we have done in previous years. 

This vital funding will help us to deliver much needed digital skills training for 200 teachers to help improve digital education for students. The training courses help to develop knowledge and skills that will assist teachers and encourage the use of ICT in the delivery of all lessons to enhance the learning process. 

We are excited to be taking part in the Big Give Christmas Challenge 2021 for the fourth consecutive year. Last year our teacher training project in Zambia was hugely successful, we reached our fundraising targets and have exceeded our target of the number of teachers trained. In just under one month the Big Give​ Christmas Challenge launches on #GivingTuesday (midday 30th Nov)  - ​Could you support us?
Please save the date 30th November 2021 – 7th December 2021. 

​For one week only, online donations raised for our teacher training project in Zimbabwe, will be DOUBLED as part of a match funding campaign. For example, an online donation of £100 would be doubled to £200. If Gift Aid is claimed, the donation could be worth £225.
(Donations are doubled whilst matching funds last.) 

​Project Overview 
Our goal is to train 200 teachers and improve the digital skills of teachers and students. Consequently students will leave school confident and digitally focused to improve their future education, employment and life prospects. Schools lack the resources to provide digital training for teachers. Teachers are left lacking the skills, motivation and confidence to provide a positive digital learning experience for students. 

We believe the impact of our project will be improved digital literacy for better educational opportunities for Zimbabwean students. Over time we expect a digitally enabled workforce to emerge in Zimbabwe, increasing efficiency and production. 

For further information  please contact jenny@itschoolsafrica.org 
Please note only donations made through our Christmas Challenge campaign page on the Big Give website, using a valid debit or credit card, from midday Tuesday 30th November to midday Tuesday 7th December will be matched.  

Our aim is to help people in Gloucestershire to improve their digital skills. We have partnered with ​Digital Unite to deliver digital skills training through digital champions, shared learning and best practice to enable digital and social inclusion.

In the last year, we are delighted to have trained over 40 Digital Champions across Gloucestershire. Working with our community partners we aim to support more people to improve their digital skills and realise the benefits of being online. ​Many of those who aren't online don't feel comfortable learning on their own and need personal, one to one support focusing on overcoming the barriers of being online and engaging use of the internet. 

 We want to grow our Digital Champions network; could you volunteer as a Digital Champion and help change someone’s life? If you think you'd like to help please email contact@itschoolsafrica.org

The aim of our project is to improve the digital skills of teachers and students to aid vocational skills and facilitate entrepreneurship. The project will improve the proficiencies of teachers, children and school heads and will help to integrate the use of ICT into teaching and learning. 

​Currently, schools do not have the resources to provide digital training for teachers. Teachers are left lacking the digital skills, motivation and confidence to provide a positive digital learning experience for students.
Without a digital education students are missing out on the opportunity to learn how they can apply technology to their lives, to use it practically and innovatively to help improve their future prospects.

The training courses are specifically aimed at developing knowledge and skills to assist teachers when delivering ICT in education. This helps to give them the confidence to use ICT more in the classroom, making teaching easier and more interactive for the students.

"There is an increased need for more knowledge on how to use IT in the learning process, an area where most teachers have been found wanting. It would be great to have more training where teachers are empowered to effectively and efficiently use this technology."
IK Chibona, Deputy Head, Usher High School, Zimbabwe

Could your company or school support our project?
​Join us in training 200 teachers and enabling students to leave school confident and digitally focused to improve their future education, employment and life prospects.  
Contact : jenny@itschoolsafrica.org

We want to support and connect digitally excluded communities in Gloucestershire. The DigiBus project will take digital technology and learning to the people who need it most; crossing the county in a converted double decker bus, stopping in towns and villages for a few days at a time providing a free digital skills training service. 

Digibus aims to educate and inspire; as well as providing vital digital skills training, it will demonstrate how other exciting technologies work. 

Volunteers needed:
Digibus are now looking for volunteers to help our IT trainers give digital skills support and to drive the bus, so please if you'd like to get involved, or stay updated about Digibus, including timetabling and events. For more information and to sign up to the newsletter email: digibus@itschoolsafrica.org

To find out more and please visit the DigiBus website here. ​