Firm to provide schools' link-up

SECONDARY students will be able to link up with students from 35 countries and learn about their cultures and ways of life by using personal computers in the classroom.

To encourage the use of electronic messaging as a learning tool, American Telephone and Telegraph (AT&T) has donated softwares and provided electronic mail services to connect 20 schools to the AT&T Learning Network.

The softwares include school materials and manuals aimed at helping teachers guide students in the use of the network.

Schools only need microcomputers, a telephone line and a modem to connect to the network.

The network is a curriculum-based programme; each curriculum choice runs on a term, which ranges from six to 15 weeks depending on the subject.

The 24-hour network enables messages to be sent worldwide in seconds. These messages are stored in electronic mail-boxes, then read by all members of the Learning Circle.

An ID code would be given to the participating school to avoid any abuse of the network. Schools which are interested in the programme could subscribe to the US$375 ($2,900) network for one curriculum for one semester (13 weeks).