NEWS: Intel lends a hand

PROVING there is truth to the adage, “time is money”, Intel Corporation chairman Datuk Dr Craig Barrett recently presented the Education Ministry with a cheque for US$223,950 (RM710,000).

The sum, collected as a result of nearly 60,000 hours of volunteer labour logged in by Intel Malaysia employees last year, was raised by the corporation under the Intel Involved Matching Grant Programme (IIMGP).

It will be used to aid 23 schools in the country. The cheque presentation ceremony took place at SMK Datuk Haji Ahmad Badawi in Kepala Batas, Penang.

“I am proud of the leadership shown by our employees through this initiative,” said Dr Barrett, who is on a tour of Southeast Asian countries. “Volunteer efforts tied to education can extend the impact of the use of ICT in schools and advance Malaysia’s social and economic development.”

Dr Barrett (left) handing over the mock cheque to Dr Salbiah at the cheque presentation ceremony.

To celebrate Intel’s 40th anniversary celebrations this year, Dr Barrett also made an appeal to its 85,000 employees worldwide to donate one million hours of volunteer service to projects which promote access to education, health care and Internet connectivity. Volunteer hours under IIMGP are matched with grants by Intel Foundation for schools and NGOs worldwide.

“ICT plays a crucial role in ensuring future human development in our country,” said the Education Ministry's Education Technology Division director Dr Salbiah Ismail, who was present at the cheque presentation ceremony.

Dr Barrett later spoke to teachers and students of SMK Datuk Haji Ahmad Badawi about the benefits of ICT on education. The school is one of 10 across Malaysia taking part in the 1:1 e-learning pilot project, introduced in April last year.

The project saw 460 Classmate PCs installed in Year Four and Form Two classes in selected pilot schools. Teachers in these schools also go through the Intel® Teach programme which trains them on innovative ways to use computers and other technology in the classroom.

The success of the pilot project has led Intel and the Education Ministry to extend their collaboration to Phase Two of the 1:1 e-learning project.

“The second phase will involve three schools – SK Cyberjaya, SMK Cyberjaya and SK Putrajaya II.

“Intel has agreed to provide the notebooks for one of the schools while the Education Ministry will look into purchasing the notebooks for the second school,” said Dr Salbiah.

“The Multimedia Development Corporation has agreed to look into the notebook requirements for the third school,” she added.