Students show off their skills to (from left) Bassem Shatila of ABC Doha, Paul Young, Vice Principal Curriculum, Mark Leppard, Principal and Graeme Bolton, Chairman of the Board of the Governors for Doha College.
Doha College is embracing technology by providing all its students with access to mobile learning through its new iPad Programme. This 3 year programme will see all students using an iPad to enhance their studies. The new Chair of the Board of the Governors Graeme Bolton was able to present the children with their iPads as they started back to school.
Paul Young, Vice Principal Curriculum explained the thinking behind this new programme: “Technology engages students and research has shown that students learn best when they are actively engaged. iPads are indicative of the way young people interact with the world; they are simple and intuitive.”
Young further said, “using the various apps we have already installed for our students, they will be able to store curriculum notes easily and research around subjects online.”
“The students will own the iPads and are free to use them in school and at home. Young explained, “Students contribute 50 percent towards the iPad and it becomes theirs to use at school and at home, this way we can extend the learning community to include parents, siblings and other people who are important in the lives of each student.”
As one AS level student Alex Griffiths explained, “As I enter my final A level studies, being able to research around my chosen subject areas and use my iPad to make notes, store my research and present my findings to my teachers will be invaluable and will save a lot of time having to copy out work into notebooks.“
“This iPad initiative is not just about the technology it is about embracing new ways of learning and teaching explained Paul Young. “We have already run several training sessions for parents, students and staff which have all been well attended. We must thank Bassem Shatila of ABC Doha, who have supported Doha College by providing advice, technical support and training for our students, staff and parents. It is our intention to become a Lighthouse Apple approved school and we would welcome staff from other schools to attend our training courses with the aim of encouraging technology throughout all schools in Qatar.”
The Peninsula
