AMD promises learning lab roll-out

By Leon Engelbrecht, ITWeb senior writer

Johannesburg, 10 Aug 2007

Chip-maker Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) is to roll out further learning laboratories at South African schools in coming months, the company says.

Newly-appointed country manager Imi Mosaheb says that following the successful launch of the first laboratory at the Nelson R Mandela High School, in Gugulethu, Cape Town, in April, "we are currently conducting site visits to the next several schools that will be rolled out in various parts of the country during the second half of 2007".

The roll-out is being conducted under AMD's 50x15 banner, in terms of which the company and its partners are seeking to develop new technology and solutions that will help enable affordable Internet access and computing capability for 50% of the world's population by the year 2015.

Mosaheb says learning laboratories are customised, measurable deployments that not only provide students with Internet access, but also educational, personal and professional development tools that unlock new and powerful ways for students to collaborate with their teachers.

The learning laboratories also serve as a cost-effective means to maintain a current curriculum, a challenge teachers have historically faced due to ageing textbooks. "In previous deployments, such as Gugulethu, access to the Internet has encouraged students to stay enrolled in school longer and to embark on digital learning expeditions," Mosaheb says.

Best practice

Learning laboratory deployments also follow best practices for an effective school ICT solution, Mosaheb adds. The laboratories feature a holistic, comprehensive infrastructure comprising compact, sealed, ultra-low power IT hardware designed to cope with the unique local challenges of the environment.

The systems are able to run the latest operating systems, including Windows Starter Edition, Windows XP Pro and Linux. The laboratories also come equipped with content and applications; a local area network; Internet connectivity; a teacher-training programme; maintenance and support; and a sustainability plan. "Additionally, this learning lab includes support from a broad ecosystem of partners," Mosaheb says.

"The Internet plays such a fundamental role in our lives today that, for many of us, imagining the world without it is nearly impossible. We rely on the Internet to enhance communication, education, productivity, business, entertainment, and much more.

"But today, less than 17% of the world's roughly six billion people have access to the Internet and the economy it is helping to drive. This not only prevents people in high-growth and developing regions, such as SA, from realising greater educational, social, and business opportunities, it also limits the opportunities for our country's economic growth and participation in the global economy," Mosaheb says.

"Truly lasting change isn't going to happen overnight. However, the fact that more and more companies and institutions are getting off the sidelines to help solve the issue of global Internet access and computing adoption is more important than any single 'solution' being promoted."

Asked about AMD's One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) programme in light of the Classmate PC pilot project launch last week, Mosaheb says "OLPC does not currently have plans to roll-out in SA".

He adds that OLPC is just one of the pillars of AMD's 50x15 initiative. "We believe there are many ways to accomplish the mission of 50x15... 50x15 is well underway in SA with further projects taking place in the coming months."