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Panama’s British School – La Escuela Gran Bretana – has received five new computers courtesy of INS and PNTL, together with an upgrade of its older machines and a year of internet service.
Located around fifteen miles outside Panama City, the school has longstanding links to the UK that today are facilitated by the British Embassy. Images of British scenes, such as Big Ben, adorn the walls of the computer laboratory which is a key resource for the 1,700 pupils (age range four to teens) who attend classes in morning and afternoon shifts.
Last year, Alastair Brown, General Manager of PNTL, raised INS and PNTL’s corporate responsibility programme with Richard Austen, the UK’s Ambassador to Panama, with a view to identifying educational projects that could be supported. The Panama Canal route between Europe and Japan has been used for shipments of spent fuel since 1970, making the country an important location for INS and PNTL.
Alastair and Mark Jervis, Managing Director of International Nuclear Services, discussed the school’s needs with Casilda Perez, school principal, in December 2009.
Alastair said: “When we visited in December, the school was in session and we were able to visit two classes. The pupils are keen to learn and see education as the way to develop their potential. They are very polite and, like children anywhere, seem to be full of energy when running round the school and playing. The principal identified the computer lab and need for internet access as their top priorities since the computers are typically stand alone Pentium 2 or 3 machines. Most of the computers were in fact so old and under specified that they could not run the language software the teachers wanted to use.”
Following their visit, Jacky Clarke, INS’s consultant in Panama, arranged for a technician to visit the school and evaluate their needs. Following his advice, INS and PNTL agreed to purchase five new computers and upgrade 26 existing machines to so that they can run the software.
Alastair visited the school to formally hand over the new equipment in February, just prior to the Pacific Sandpiper’s transit through Panama on its way to Japan with the first shipment of vitrified high level waste (HLW) from Sellafield. This was during the summer holidays in Panama, which run from mid- December to the end of February, so the school was relatively quiet.
Alastair said: “The five new computers had been delivered and Amelis de Centella, deputy principal confirmed that they are delighted with them. This gift from INS and PNTL will make a big difference to the school once term begins again. I am sure the pupils will put the computers to very good use.”
20 February 2010
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