ESHER, Hanover — Esher Primary School has become the first school in the parish to benefit from a Digicel Foundation Smart Lab. The donation was made on Thursday, much to the delight of students and educators.

The lab consists of 12 laptop computers, 12 tablets, individual headphones and a seating area for students. Kept cool with two air-conditioning units, the smart lab also has a printer and a Mimio Pro 4 panel.

“This panel is quite interactive; it has a lot of features that allow the students to interact with it on a very high engaging level. As an educator, I am extremely excited about this smart room because it will definitely be able to enrich learning experiences for the students and also for us as teachers. Every time I step foot inside this room, I feel empowered and I feel excited because there is always something new to learn about the panel and something new to learn about how to integrate the technology into the lessons of the students,” the school’s information and communication technology coordinator Shantae Barnett told the Jamaica Observer.

“I think that for us as teachers, as educators, it will enable us to reach the students better because they are already aware of the technology and it will be able to allow us to keep them engaged, keep them excited about learning,” she added.

Once dubious about the wisdom of incorporating tech tools such as artificial intelligence in her classroom, Barnett had a change of heart after participating in a recent seminar.

“I’m no longer sceptical about it. I’m now excited to explore all of the new technological developments that are coming in and just use those to build the students and to build my institution,” she told the Observer as she indicated that she is still careful about over-reliance on technology.

“Even when I’m using the technology, I still have to be mindful of how I’m using it because I don’t want the students to become too laid-back and they’re not pushing themselves,” Barnett said.

After the smart lab was handed over on Thursday, grade five students Shamira McDermott and Beyonar Thorpe were eager to use it. Both are of the view that it will be a huge help in their studies.

“When we are using the books, we take longer than we would when using electronics to search for the things we would need. If I want to become a scientist I would have to learn about different things, research a lot of things and the smart room would be amazing for that,” stated Thorpe.

McDermott, who wants to become a surgeon, said use of the technology provided in the lab will be useful when she is doing research on the body.

Esher is the second school in the education ministry’s region four to have a smart lab installed. Anchovy Primary School in St James was the first and Unity Primary School in Westmoreland was slated to receive its lab a day after Esher.

In delivering her keynote speech on Thursday, the education ministry’s regional director Dr Michele Pinnock encouraged educators not to be afraid of using technology and assured them that it will not be used to replace them.

“If we are able to speak the language of our children, we are going to be able to attract them and take them to the next level,” she urged.

Like other speakers before, Pinnock thanked Digicel Foundation for the lab and encouraged it to continue supporting the education sector.