Armenia Government Primary School Wins OAS Digital Champion Challenge

Eleven schools countrywide participated in the Digital Champion Challenge hosted by the Organization of American States (OAS), and Armenia Government Primary School in the Cayo district was declared the winner. The OAS through a partnership with the ProFuturo Foundation, donated equipment and gave training to teachers from the participating schools to promote the use of digital education. A hundred and sixty-two teachers and over three thousand nine hundred students participated in the program. Fifteen teachers from Armenia Government School delivered lessons using the equipment to four hundred and ten students.  OAS Representative in Belize, Dr. Luiz Octavio Coimbra said that Armenia Government School won the competition because the school displayed the highest level of commitment to the program. 

Luiz Octavio Coimbra, Belize Representative, OAS: “Profutur is a foundation from Spain and they decided to send equipment to Belize, equipment to manage content and for the teachers to be able to use to grade students to follow the curriculum. It’s not only equipment but it’s a way of digital work. In this project, Profutur is for primary schools. We want primary schools equipped to deal with this transformation in technology in education and we want the kids of Belize, the OAS wants the kids of Belize and the government wants the kids of Belize, we all want the kids of Belize ready for the challenge of the new technologies and the new environment that we have nowadays. The award is a small award, a trophy, free laptop computers, brand new digital good computers for the school that was most committed to this transformation. In Armenia Government School won the award because they had the most teachers involved with the digital technologies using the digital equipment in giving the students training in digital technologies.”

Dr. Coimbra added that the awards pale in comparison to the training and skills that the children have received through the program. He went on to say that the OAS has several other ongoing initiatives supporting education in Belize.

Luiz Octavio Coimbra, Belize Representative, OAS: “Profutur is not the only project of the OAS here. I mean at this very moment we have Trust for the Americas Foundation from the OAS training high school teachers in digital equipment and digital transformation. Yesterday they were here, a group of five trainees working with teachers. We had it here in Belize City, the day before they were in Corozal, and today they are in Dangriga with teachers from Dangriga. Yesterday I saw two hundred teachers here in Belize City being trained on digital equipment that Fifa Foundation and the IDB donated to forty three schools in Belize. I mean that’s not only a donation of equipment, that’s not only to have the technology but Belizean students are being taught how to use technology, how to use technology to their benefit.”

The other schools that participated in the competition were Ladyville Evangelical School; Our Lady of Fatima RC School, Pancotto Primary School, Raymond Sheppard Nazarene Primary School, St. Joseph RC School in Belize City, St. Joseph RC in Cotton Tree Village, St. Mary’s Anglican School, St. Matthew’s Government School, St. Matthew’s RC School and Unity Presbyterian School.