A few days ago, the American First Lady, Dr. Jill Biden, visited Egypt. The thing that caught the attention of most observers during the US First Lady’s official visit to Egypt was the fact that on her agenda was a visit to El Sewedy International School of Applied Technology and Software with Dr. Biden graciously dedicating a whole hour of her time (instead of the 15 minutes planned) to talk to the students, teachers and administrators of the school.
The amount of time spent at the school reflects how the world perceives science and technology and recognizes its significance. The First Lady of the United States also wrote an inspiring message to the students of the school saying: “You are all dazzling” signifying the importance of believing and investing in our youth.
El Sewedy: The school offers its educational service in the form of a fully funded grant to students that demonstrate exceptional proficiency in English and Mathematics conditional upon the acceptance of the Ministry of Education.
The visit was also an excellent opportunity for students to showcase some of their innovative ideas for software applications to Dr. Jill Biden, including an app called (Salahly) which offers reliable maintenance services to its users as well as another app catering to the needs of the hearing impaired by helping in their daily communication.
El Sewedy: Our goal is to offer the thing that we value most as industrialists, and that is without a doubt the capability for research and development. And this wouldn’t have been possible to achieve without the support of the Ministry of Education, which offered its full backing to overcome all obstacles.
El Sewedy International School of Applied Technology and Software, which is affiliated to El Sewedy Electrometer Group, along with other newly established international schools of applied technology in 7 governorates in accordance with best international standards and practices through a strategic cooperation with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), represent a shining beacon in the Egyptian Educational System as they enhance the role of technical education to achieve comprehensive and sustainable industrial development in Egypt. The purpose of these schools is to place focus on the development of the technical education and vocational training sector in accordance with the needs of the labor market, with the aim of significantly increasing productivity, strengthening the Egyptian Economy, steering the wheel of development and construction towards new heights and most importantly raising the standard of living for regular citizens.
Power News met with Eng. Emad El Sewedy, Chairman and CEO of El Sewedy Electrometer Group, who described how the idea of establishing the school came about and what the founders hope to achieve with this initiative. Mr. El Sewedy said that the Egyptian Government always encouraged the private sector to take part in technical education, however, in the past it was limited to graduating technicians on production lines in factories. He explained that the founders wanted to do something different and offer the thing that they value most as industrialists, and that is without a doubt the capability for research and development.
He pointed out that the greatest need in the market at the moment is for skilled technicians and engineers specialized in the fields of design and programming. To this end, El Sewedy sought the help of experts from the Faculty of Engineering when establishing their school led by Dr. Mohamed Abdelwahab, professor of computing and information systems at Cairo University. The strategy put in place entailed that the school could graduate its students as proficient software developers within a period of 3 years after concluding their preparatory education. This strategy was presented to and coordinated with the Deputy Minister of Education Dr. Mohamed Megahed and Dr. Amr Basila, Head of Applied Technology Unit at the Ministry of Education.
El Sewedy added that the concept was widely accepted by officials at the Ministry of Education, but, there was some apprehension about whether the idea could actually be implemented. However, this did not dissuade any of the parties involved and once the agreement between the Ministry of Education, the Egypt Manpower Project funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and El Sewedy as the Industrial Partner was signed, we collaboratively took quick steps to start establishing the school.
Great Support from the Ministry of Education
Mr. Emad emphasized the importance of the role played by the Ministry of Education in their unwavering support to the idea from conception until it became a reality within a short timeframe, including their support in overcoming obstacles and challenges, offering the necessary facility that could accommodate 50 classrooms in accordance with our vision and specifications, as well as their flexibility in approving the curricula and courses devised in accordance with the highest international quality standards to allow us to achieve our goal of preparing graduates for a labor market that keeps pace with the world of digital transformation and modern technologies.
School Services for free
Furthermore, he stressed that the school is keen to provide its educational service free of charge, however, admittance would only be allowed to students that demonstrate exceptional proficiency in English and Mathematics. In return, students would be offered an opportunity to study in a technological environment that keeps pace with the latest global developments as well as gain the skills and competencies through the methodology of technological education that would enable them to find excellent job opportunities at distinguished factories, companies and institutions locally and internationally.
The scientific curriculum devised for students is practical and will be taught using laptops
And to simplify the educational curriculum, which focuses greatly on practical projects rather than just theoretical knowledge, students are each requested to prepare a concept for a project that addresses problems that people face in their daily lives and how they would help to resolve these problems through the adoption of modern applications. The results of this educational approach were presented to Dr. Jill Biden during her visit.
Some of the most impressive applications were recognized and awarded prizes for their ingenuity, such as the app called (Salahly), which won first prize, that offers reliable maintenance services to its users including plumbing and electrification works after explaining the user’s problem and agreeing to the fees with the technician. The app also enables its users to rate and review technicians, hence ensuring a high level of quality in the service that is being provided.
Another impressive app caters to the needs of the hearing impaired by helping in their daily communication through the translation of sign language into written text and vice versa utilizing a mobile phone’s camera to capture the different signs.
Finally, Mr. Emad El Sewedy expressed his appreciation and delight for the visit of the US First Lady to the school as it truly reflects the importance and the great interest that major countries place on education and technology. During this visit, Dr. Jill Biden had the chance to converse with some of the students and teachers of El Sewedy International of Applied Technology and Software about the future of programming as well as what their personal ambitions are for the future. The US First Lady and her daughter also graciously took part in some of the extracurricular activities organized for the day along with the US Ambassador to Egypt, which summarizes beautifully how the day went and really demonstrates the positive impression that Dr. Biden and her entourage got from the school, its vision and its bright-minded students.
