KPESEs Digital Literacy Programme Khyber Pakhtunkhwa initiative is running successfully across 225 Elementary and Secondary Schools in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. In the advent of the digital era, the orthodox and outdated computer science curriculum being taught at schools has become irrelevant to the rapidly evolving and in-demand digital skills. Digital technology has emerged as the single biggest market disruptor and it has not only changed the way we interact with the world around us but has also redefined literacy and competency required to participate in the society as useful citizens.
As we inch towards digitization, it becomes paramount that we bridge the digital divide across the various socio-economic classes of the society by imparting digital literacy and relevant digital skills. This shift in priority needs to be reflected in the curriculum adopted at public schools in order to stay at par with current trends. Coding and Programming are essential tools of computer science. The emergence of drag and drop computer programming has enabled easier learning for coding languages and kids can learn to code using visual code blocks that represent real programming concepts. This particular concept of block coding forms the very essence of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Information Technology Board’s (KPESE’s) Digital Literacy Programme Khyber Pakhtunkhwa initiative.
KPITB in collaboration with the Elementary & Secondary Education department of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa launched the Digital Literacy Programme Khyber Pakhtunkhwa project in 2017.In the Phase-I of the project from January 2017 to December 2017, 3000 students and concerned IT Teachers of 57 Government Schools in 13 districts were trained on EAP curriculum. In the Phase-II of the project from January 2018 to June 2019, the initiative was extended to 300 Government Schools of 14 districts, wherein 17,000 students and IT Teachers of the respective schools were trained on EAP curriculum and currently in Phase-III 11,000 students of 225 schools across 10 districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are benefitting from the said Project. The project has produced remarkable results and the computer literacy and digital skill level of the marginalized students of government schools have improved significantly. The curriculum developed for the Digital Literacy Programme Khyber Pakhtunkhwa initiative is by far the most advanced in the country, leaving behind the curriculum offered by most of the renowned private schools. It is pertinent to mention that the Digital Literacy Programme Khyber Pakhtunkhwa initiative falls under the Digital Skills pillar of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Digital Strategy. The initiative is well in line with the Sustainable Development Goals and promises to contribute towards the economic uplifting of the country as well as reducing inequalities and improving the quality of education.