Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

”Investments in education are important to the future, in the Arab world and around the globe.“

Craig R. Barrett
Intel Chairman

A visit to Riyadh: In Craig's Words

Today, I kicked off my fourth visit to the Gulf region in Riyadh (Saudi Arabia) by pledging technical support for building a high-speed wireless network in the country using WiMAX. I dedicated a pilot project for e-learning at a Saudi Arabian school, which is becoming a top priority in many educational systems throughout the world: "Our joint commitment to technological innovation shows that much can be accomplished when private industry and government work in tandem to achieve a common vision."

At Riyadh's Bishr Ibn Elbaraa School (a public school for boys in grades 7 through 9), I was joined by Saudi Minister of Education to launch the e-learning pilot project. This project is supposed to run in two classrooms, and outfitted with notebook computers and the specially designed Intel-powered Classmate PCs. The smaller, student-sized netbooks are designed to be low-cost, wireless-capable, water-and-shock resistant, and fully functional computers, which are pre-loaded with standard software and locally relevant educational programs. All computers used in the pilot project feature Intel's skoool™ Learning and Teaching Technology, an interactive Web-based resource for learning math and science that has been Arabized and tailored to local Saudi needs. Teachers involved in the e-learning pilot are graduates of the Intel® Teach Program, which trains teachers on effective ways to integrate ICT in the curriculum. Intel Teach and the Classmate PC are key components of a one-on-one learning proof of concept that Intel has carried out in numerous countries.

Intel worked closely with a set of local businesses, including KETAB, a manufacturer of pen-based collaborative whiteboards; Binary Works, an education service provider that implemented the hardware and provided the School Management System and the Learning Management System; Semanoor, a software vendor that provided Semanoor e-content; and MGD, a software vendor that provided Crocodile Clips virtual labs.