Sino Group offers educational support to children in laptop donation programme

Sino Group's non-profit organisation Hong Kong Innovation Foundation (HKIF) has launched a programme to provide educational support to children from cash-strapped families in the new academic year.

Aiming at easing the transition for students and parents to make online learning at home more accessible and effective, the programme will see the HKIF and Sino Group donate 200 laptops with mobile data SIM cards to students from primary four to form who have difficulties in procuring a computer for online classes.

In support of this initiative, the laptops and local mobile data SIM cards have been made available at a special rate thanks to Google, Microsoft Hong Kong and 3HK. Successful applicants will receive one laptop with a three-year warranty and two local mobile data SIM cards, valid for 12 months.

In addition to the hardware support, the HKIF is also working with Hong Kong Baptist University to offer job opportunities to university students as online learning support ambassadors. A series of training courses will be provided to enhance students’ understanding of computers and internet use, as well as to respond to their daily learning needs.

Support ambassadors will respond to all enquiries related to online learning, including software use and different e-learning platforms. 

The HKIF will also conduct training workshops introduced to generate students’ interest in online learning, enhance self-directed learning and explore their potential in technology and innovation in collaboration with Google and Microsoft Hong Kong. The workshops will cover basic computer knowledge, online research techniques and other innovative experiences.

A series of seminars and training courses designed for parents and teachers will also be held to explain and demonstrate knowledge of the internet and e-learning.

"Continued learning is essential and critical to children’s growth and development. With the support of like-minded partners, we hope to help students, parents and teachers adapt to the new learning arrangements and make good use of technology to learn at home amid the current situation," said Daryl Ng, chairman of the HKIF and deputy chairman of Sino Group.