Taking up the Lapdesk Challenge

The portable lapdesk is a fibreglass board and comes with a school name board and a diary, which can be used at school and at home.

Richard Chauke, Old Mutual: Limpopo Provincial General Manager said it's expected that all learners have equal access to quality education and facilities. “However … many learners in rural areas are still experiencing shortages in educational resources, from learning material to equipment. The backlog in the rollout of resources requires corporates to partner with government in improving the ability of learners to receive quality education.”

Chauke added that Lapdesks are merely an extension of the many initiatives that Old Mutual as a corporate is involved in. For many years Old Mutual has given name boards to schools as a way of giving pride to the schools.

Sydney Kgatle, Modumaane Secondary School Principal is confident that the impact of this project will be tremendous. “Currently learners are writing on soft surfaces such as the ground or whatever is available. In a classroom environment having proper facilities allows for both the teacher and learner to concentrate on what is important, which is learning.”

Chauke said this should be considered a challenge to other corporates in South Africa to sit up and take notice. “We are striving towards a society where education is open to all, but what good is that open door if there is no equity.

“This small gesture we know will make a difference in the learning experience of these learners.

“We have committed to give 60,000 learners lapdesks over a 2 year period. We have put together year 2007 and 2008 into one rollout. After the rollout we will assess and evaluate the impact. We are of the opinion it is a valuable contribution and hence we will look favourably into continuing our involvement,” said Chauke.