Cape Town – Pupils and teachers at Christel House South Africa in Ottery joined close to half a million of their peers and guest experts from around the world when they participated in Microsoft's annual 48-hour international Skype-a-thon.
Using "Skype in the Classroom", Christel House South Africa was the only school in the country selected to be part of this online conversation.
This annual event is aimed at raising awareness of different cultures, values and perspectives, and support a quality education for children in need around the world.
The telecommunications application tool offers live educational experiences for pupils, including virtual field trips, classroom to classroom connections and live collaboration projects.
Connecting live with Skype-a-thon host, and vice-president of Education at Microsoft in the US, Anthony Salcito, pupils shared a glimpse of South African diversity through traditional African song and dance.
They also enjoyed the opportunity to participate in a question and answer session with Salcito, leaving inspired to maximise on their tech-savvy learning environments at Christel House.
Christel House is an international charity, with a mission to break the cycle of poverty. The school offers free scholarships to pupils from some of Cape Town's most disadvantaged communities and provides them with quality education, healthcare, daily meals, guidance counselling, college and career support, and daily transport to school.