Samsung, Pearson partner to equip students with tablets

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According to Paulo Ferreira, head of enterprise mobility of Samsung Electronics South Africa, the company remains committed to upskilling young learners by developing innovative technology solutions that enable tertiary education in a far more collaborative and accessible manner.

The students will receive a Samsung Galaxy Note 8 tablet, preloaded with educational materials including e-textbooks, as well offer the students access to the institution's app for course information and timetables. The Galaxy Note 8 offers a range of benefits to accommodate the various aspects of student life. Practical S Note templates and S Planner features help to manage everyday tasks, including class notes, to-do lists and important event diary entries. All content can be entered and updated with the finest of detail due to the evolution of the intelligent Samsung S Pen. Enhanced precision is offered with handwriting-to-text conversion and advanced productivity tools that support formula and shape recognition.

Students and lecturers benefit

Darren Fox, joint CEO of Pearson CTI and MGI believes the tablet partnership with Samsung is a key enabler in offering globally accredited and recognised academic qualifications, in line with the institutions' core approach to learning, which has real-world application.

"As well as the convenience of fewer text books the students benefit from always having their content with them. The tablets allow easy and convenient sharing and facilitate engagement in a more collaborative way, which enriches learning. Lecturers benefit from the digital capturing of information, which simplifies course administration and, most importantly, allows individual learner tracking and monitoring of performance to tailor their approach to specific student needs. We believe the combined benefits for both student and educator will result in improved learning outcomes and having access to the latest developments in mobile technology, these young learners are gaining the necessary skills that they will require in the modern workplace. This places them in a far stronger position in the job market."

Ferreira said that this partnership reflects the need for higher education institutions to engage with learners in new contemporary ways.

"The Samsung Galaxy Note 8 tablet was selected as being the most suitable for the environment, as it perfectly combines portability and productivity. Students can now enjoy the ease of a traditional pen and paper, but with the latest in notebook technological innovation. In addition, a recent survey conducted by Pearson found that the Galaxy Note 8 was the most popular tablet among students," said Ferreira.

In order to provide an integrated solution, Samsung partnered Pinnacle Africa (a prominent South African distributor of advanced ICT equipment) to offer professional development, reverse logistics, on-site support and side loading as well as supply the devices to more than 10,000 students who start their studies at CTI and MGI Higher Education Institutions in 2014.

Ferreira noted that e-learning has become the convergence of the best in technology and digital content. "The Samsung e-learning ecosystem extends to include value-added services that can be offered to educational institutions. This includes providing students with 1GB of free monthly Internet access at Wi-Fi hot spots across the country, as a result of a joint venture with AlwaysOn."

He said that such initiatives are a crucial contributing factor towards the economic growth of a country. "The South African government has repeatedly stressed the importance of the role of quality education in uplifting the economic development of the country. As such, it is crucial that we not only ensure that South Africa keeps pace with technological innovations, but also that young learners remain at the forefront of these developments.

"We are living in a demanding fast-paced world and it is no different for today's students. They need convenient, constant access to their educational material, in order for them to be able to study anywhere, at any time. We are pleased that through this partnership we are enabling thousands of students to do just that and look forward to seeing the contribution that these students will make to South Africa in the future," concluded Ferreira.