My name is Lawrence Ssenkubuge. I am teacher of Mathematics and Physics by training. I can however say, many people know me more as a computer applications teacher or an ICT trainer. There are other terms they use to describe me because of what the perceive me to be able to do in ICT but I personally don’t like those.

I started gathering interest in the computers around 1994. My major interest then was how I could use a computer to communicate better with my students that is simply how could the computer help my students learn better?

In 1998 SchoolNet Uganda was formed with technical assistance from the World Links Program. One of the major project components was teacher professional development. Here teachers were empowered with skills ranging from use of the Internet for collaborative projects to use of computers to facilitate learning. In my very first training, I wrote a collaborative project called the Wetlands project that I jointly carried out with a school teacher in Australia.  After this project I was invited to an international teachers‘conference in Chattanooga at the University of Tennessee, USA. I was able to meet many educators and to learn from them a lot of things that ICT could do.

As a result of associating and working with SchoolNet Uganda, I have been able to attend and also facilitate numerous workshops here and abroad. I have been able to participate in International Education and Resource Network (iEARN) conferences in Cape Town (South Africa), San Juan (Puerto Rico) and Moscow (Russia).
I have been able to reach places I never dreamt of going to before I joined ICT activism in general and SchoolNet in particular. One of such places is the Red Square in Moscow. It is such a historical place that only the lucky few could possibly get a chance to visit it. 
On one of my trips to the ICT conferences, I achieved my ambition of   being able to reach the   shores of the three major oceans; Indian Ocean, Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean.  This was in Feb 2002 when I was part of a team of teachers in an exchange program with the Kern High School district in California, USA. We were able to witness and try out of potential uses of ICT in education and other areas. We were also able to stay in a typical American family.

I need several days to tell my story of my ICT voyages and activities which time may not permit. In summary the following are in my opinion may major opportunities gained as a result of me embracing ICT as a teacher and being part of SchoolNet Uganda.

1. Motivation to continue as a teacher and an effective one.
2. Traveling to various parts of the world.
3. Changing my view of the learning and teaching process from a traditional to pragmatic participatory one where both the teacher and the learner collaborate to enhance learning. I have also discovered that I can teach practically any subject if I prepare properly with the use of ICT, my latest experience was when I facilitated an S6 Biology class on evolution. I used Internet and CD based resources, since my students were not completely blank and students are never blank, we were able to study a lot in evolution.
4.  Being part of a network of learners and teachers who use ICT and the Internet to learn and teach.
5. Being close to my fellow teachers although we are not at the same work station, this is through the power of the Internet and collaboration.
6. Sharing resources, skills and experiences with other educators.
7. Learning from and with others.
8. Facilitation skills.
9. Learn a lot of ICT skills ranging from usage of various soft wares; Virtual Reality to    image editing and video recording.
10. My students show more interest in the work I do with them when I include the ICT skills learnt with SchoolNet Uganda. My performance has also continued to be better and better. 

Click to download: personal-testimony-lawrence-ssenkubuge.pdf