Microsoft is making available some $235 million over the next five years to help students around the world with computer equipment and training, Reuters reports. Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates is scheduled announce the program tomorrow in Berlin. The New York Times has some additional perspective via an IDG News Service story.
Beet.TV was up in Redmond a few months ago to speak with Lauren Woodman, Senior Director of Microsoft’s Government and Education Team. She a senior member of the "Unlimited Potential" program, the company initiative charged with global digital education for school children.
She shared with us a video how multiple mouse set-ups can make the most of one computer in a classroom in Thailand. We reposted this video with today’s news.
Update 1/23: Lauren is in Berlin today. She provided Beet.TV with this statement:
“Microsoft has always believed that education is
the cornerstone of opportunity and one of the most important uses for technology
is to create an educational experience that removes limitations, creates
opportunities, and brings students and teachers closer, worldwide.
Because no two communities or
economies are the same, Partners in Learning is not a one-size fits all approach
to education. Microsoft aims to satisfy the diverse needs of everyone involved
in education – from policy makers, to ministries of education, to teachers, to
the ultimate beneficiaries, the students and their parents.”
— Andy Plesser
