Microsoft provides technological training to Kuwaiti teachers

In line with its commitment to broaden digital inclusion and promote technology in education, Microsoft and the Kuwaiti Ministry of Education have recently collaborated to organise a Master TeacherTraining Programme. More than 100 educators which included Kuwaiti and non-Kuwaiti teachers from across Kuwait attended a workshop which took place from May 12th till the 28th where all educators were certified to become Master Teachers. The Master Teacher Training Programme is designed to actively increase access to technology and improve its use in the education sector through several training sessions using the latest Microsoft technologies and software. The aim of the programme is to improve creativity and innovation in the classroom while finding effective ways to share information among educators across the country. After the completion of the programme, the master teachers will have the opportunity to share their newly acquired skills with their peers by organising similar sessions within their schools. Ehab Mostafa, Country Manager of Microsoft Kuwait said, "At Microsoft, we believe that education is the most important investment to ensure a better future for individuals, communities and nations and the world as a whole. The master teacher training programme represents a continuation of our commitment to cooperate with Kuwait Ministry of Education to contribute to the economic and social development and advance efforts to build a knowledge based society. Through the Train the Trainer methodology, we are seeking to help schools gain better access to technology and for educators to explore the benefits it can bring to the classroom. These training sessions aim at providing education leaders in Kuwait with the tools to envision, implement and manage change." Commenting on the programme, Dr. Khaled Al-Rasheed - Assistant Undersecretary for Planning & Information from the Ministry of Education said, "The Master teacher training programme is in line with the Ministry's efforts to reach out to educators across the country and help them acquire new skills. This programme is an example of our strong partnership with Microsoft and we look forward to a continuous long-term association to further educators in Kuwait." The Teacher Training programme is part of Microsoft's Innovative Educator Programme. The programme, which is implemented globally, aims at helping educators across the world to collaborate and improve education through integration of ICT. The trained teachers are invited to participate in a competition in which the teachers have to design a Virtual Classroom Tour (VCT) project using the tools and information acquired through the course. The competition will be open to all Kuwaiti teachers. The top projects will have the chance to represent the country at the annual Global Partners in Learning Forum 2014. At the Global Forum, we are expecting to welcome around 500 innovative educators from the entire world in order to share ideas and experience in successfully integrating ICT in education. Out of the 500 participants only 20 will be selected as winners and recognised internationally. The four day forum will include workshops and an exhibition of all the participating schools and educators projects, as well as executive speeches from Microsoft and education specialists. The Global Forum is the culmination of a series of country-level events that took place throughout the year. Teachers competed to receive one of twelve innovative teaching awards in four key categories, and they had already been chosen as winners in their local events.