City puts ECD practitioners on the digital track

28 March 2023

The three-day training workshop for ECD practitioners from the Delft area was designed to help improve digital literacy and using the newly- acquired skills to unlock opportunities for their respective facilities. 

The City's Social Development & Early Childhood Development Department has a well-established ECD support programme, which includes assisting these facilities towards compliance for registration; First-Aid training for ECD practitioners and facilitating the acquisition of resources like toy libraries and other learning materials.

The basic computer training is the latest addition to this basket of services, with 20 ECD practitioners from Delft being the first group to attend a three-day course at the Belhar Library from 22 to 24 March 2023.

Topics included basic skills such as Word, Excel, and introduction to the World Wide Web and cybersecurity. 

Facilitators also guided the group on how to write fundraising letters, create annual budgets for their ECDs and to use online tools to search for creative ideas for their artwork.

'We live in a world where digital literacy has become a critical life skill, and it is my sincere hope that this training course will unlock new opportunities for the participants to showcase the skills they've acquired. More importantly, this training also enables teachers to build skills and confidence and learn strategies to integrate computers and other digital tools into their curriculum. I look forward to seeing this digital literacy project rolled out to benefit ECD practitioners in other areas of our city, who in turn can pass on their skills to the young learners in their care,' said Mayoral Committee Member for Community Services and Health, Councillor Patricia Van der Ross.

The training was facilitated by the City's IS&T Department, via the SmartCape programme. 

'Our IS&T Department plays an integral role in the internal workings of the City, but it has, over the years, also developed a training programme for various groups in society. This training for ECD practitioners is but the latest example of how we are using our internal expertise to empower our residents. Many other groups and individuals have benefited from our digital literacy training and I am incredibly proud of the work that we are doing in this space,' said the City's Mayoral Committee Member for Corporate Services, Alderman Theresa Uys.

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Published by:
City of Cape Town, Media Office