Jumeirah English Speaking School (JESS), with the support of Research In Motion (RIM), has raised Dh105,000 to purchase 50 BlackBerry PlayBook devices for the school’s ICT program.

RIM will match the school’s fundraising initiative with an additional 50 PlayBook devices which are fully customised with applications that will enrich the students’ ICT curriculum, said a statement.

Ruth Burke, head teacher at JESS, explained what such an initiative means to students at JESS: “Our ICT program is designed to teach students aged between three and eleven the basics of computer use, but also set the ground work for students who might be inclined to follow a career in ICT. We feel that the BlackBerry PlayBook tablet will provide a unique offering to the students, giving them exposure to a wide range of educational, multimedia and entertainment mobile applications and content.”

The fundraising auction held at the Raffles Hotel raised the money through the sale of various sports memorabilia, including a Real Madrid soccer ball signed by 18 football players from the 2006 team, an AC Milan Jersey signed by the 2009-2010 team, a Pin flag from the 20th Anniversary Dubai Desert Classic signed by nine winners and a hand painted piece of Lewis Hamilton by the artist Simon Crossley. – TradeArabia News Service