Speaking at a distribution exercise at the Cambridge High School in St. James last Wednesday where 1,588 students were presented with tablets under the Government’s $1.4 billion Tablets in Schools (TIS) pilot project, Minister Paulwell said the remaining 7,000 devices would be distributed during the early weeks of the Easter term in 2015.

This brings the number of students to receive devices to date, to about 17,000, with another 1,000 students to receive computers next week.

Minister Paulwell said that Cambridge High, which is the 28th school to benefit, represents the largest distribution point so far among the 38 schools earmarked under the project.

He noted that most of the targeted schools in St. James have already received their allocation from the 7,694 tablets set aside for the parish.

The Technology Minister told the students and their parents that the computers being distributed are state-of-the-art and equal to those being used by students in more technologically advanced countries.

“In relation to this project, there is nowhere else in the world that has more modern devices.  We want our students to be on par with those in Japan, South Korea and the United States of America. There should be no country that should have better access to technology than Jamaica,” he stated.

The Minister is encouraging members of the Cambridge community to take advantage of the free Internet access being provided under the project.

“(We will be) enabling members of the community to come on campus to access free Wi-Fi. It is still very expensive for the ordinary Jamaican to have access to the Internet and so …we have created over 200 community access points across Jamaica (including public libraries, post offices and now schools),”  Mr. Paulwell informed.

Member of Parliament for South St. James, Hon. Derrick Kellier, hailed the project, noting that it is equipping students to master technology and contribute to the growth agenda.

He urged the recipients to take care of the instruments, noting that “they are serious investments in the future of the country.”