Last Friday, Team UPLIFT continued their mission through the 1MillionDevices campaign. On 22nd October 2021, a group of students from the BAC Apprenticeship program together with GoodNews set out to help distribute digital devices to students who had their education disrupted without the access to one.
1MillionDevices by UPLIFT is designed to bridge the digital divide in education by equipping every marginalised school-going child with a digital device so that these children are given a fair chance to education. The mission of this campaign is to ensure no child gets left behind in these challenging times.
Team UPLIFT, represented by Lim Su Yie, Low Yen Hau and Tarania Suresh, distributed these devices to seven deserving students at Sekolah Jenis Kebangsaan (Cina) Pandamaran ‘B, in Klang.
Brief registration before distribution of the tablets to the recipients
The brief handover ceremony that was held in front of the school, saw overjoyed and thankful recipients smiling and talking amongst each other. Students and their parents/ guardians were present to receive the Samsung devices.
When we spoke to several students, they explained that they had to share one device with their siblings, and this made it difficult for them to attend online classes.
“My son has to share a phone with me to follow the Home-based Teaching and Learning (PdPR). If I needed to go out, he is left without a device, and it will be difficult for him to follow classes,” said one recipient’s mother.
The mother of two also informed GoodNews that she found it difficult to get a device for her daughter because of the family’s non-fixed income, which was affected, when the Movement Control Order (MCO) came into affect.
Pua Jia Hui, a standard one student, shared her excitement
Another recepient, See Hui Li, a standard two student, shared a similar story like most of the other families; the lack of a digital device, and the need to share one device among a few siblings.
When the PdPR was implemented, families with more than one school-going child had no option but to to share one device at home because the family could not afford to buy another. 1MillionDevices aims to solve this predicament.
With this campaign, students from lower income families whose educational journey has been a struggle without a digital device, will at least be able to learn from home, and follow classes optimally, and not be left behind in studies when it is time to return to school.
Overall, the distribution of devices not only puts a smile on the faces of the students who will now be able to follow classes, but also on the faces of parents and guardians, who can rest assured that their children will not be left behind in studies.
To continue the mission of ensuring that no child is left behind and have access to quality education, we invite NGOs, corporates, and individuals to partner with us to end digital poverty.
You can visit https://1milliondevices.my to find out more about the campaign and how you can help.
