Guyana Learning Channel going digital

-to enhance quality of televised educational content

The Guyana Learning Channel (GLC) will soon be upgrading its signal, making it the first channel to transmit in high definition (HD), which will allow hinterland and coastland students to access quality, televised and digitised content.

Head of the Learning Channel, Ms. Bibi Aniesha Mohamed made this disclosure during a recent interview with the Department of Public Information. She said the upgrade can be expected in a matter of weeks.

“What this means is that we’re going to move from an analogue system that every other station in the country is using and what we currently are using, to a digital… The difference between analogue and digital is it’s going to be that there’s not going to be any interference… So, you’re going to have HD quality like you have on Netflix or very crisp, clean, uninterrupted quality of video,” she said.

Under Budget 2020, the Government approved some $200 million for the establishment of six additional channels, along with a new radio station to deliver educational content.

The Ministry of Education, since August 2020, has been redesigning the learning channel’s programming to scheduled educational content for nursery to secondary school students, to fill the void COVID-19 has created in the education sector.

Meanwhile, the GLC Head said there is an ongoing programme to provide the necessary equipment for education delivery in the hinterland.  

“We’re doing a project with the Ministry of Education that enables us to provide televisions, as well as satellite and solar to power this equipment in all 210-plus hinterland, riverine communities throughout the country.”

Depending on the student population and the need, the programme will equip each school with a variation of three to six televisions. Already, six communities in Region Nine have been equipped, along with Kamarang, Kaikan and Paruima in Region Seven.

“It’s going to provide the schools with not only access to the Learning Channel; however, that’s the core need and where we hope the community is going to benefit most from, but they’re also going to be given 80-plus other channels that the community collectively, can make use of and on weekends and when the students are not utilising it.

So, it’s a huge thing, especially for those communities that lack the resources and the benefits of coastland,” Ms. Mohamed said.

The Learning Channel will also be launching its website to complement its various social media platforms, and to enhance online access to its learning resources. Provisions are also in place for persons who still utilise analogue televisions sets. The Ministry will be offering a digital receiver box that would allow them to access the content.

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