As a high school teacher at John Wesley College in Suva, Shelvin Lal is used to hearing excuses about lost, misplaced, forgotten or dog-eaten assignments.

As a computer teacher, he’s also been on the receiving end of stories involving deleted files, frozen functions and floppy failure.

Mr Lal’s students may soon find their explanations fall on deaf ears however, as CQU Fiji International Campus last week donated five computers to the School’s IT department.

When Campus Director, Jonathan Purdy, received a letter from Lal appealing for resources to help keep the IT department running, he knew that the timing was perfect and the donation was urgent. CQU FIC had just completed a computer upgrade, installing flat screen computers in most labs.

“The students and staff at John Wesley College have shown a real enthusiasm for IT studies, especially given the condition of the equipment they’ve been using. We felt it would be disappointing for students to miss out on developing this interest simply because of unreliable equipment," he said.

John Wesley College built a computer lab in 2004, and staff and students were delighted with the first 15 computers that had been purchased second-hand.

The IT curriculum was launched and students were gaining knowledge and confidence in programs such as Microsoft Word and Excel.

After 2 years, however, the demand placed on the computing equipment finally took its toll. Only 10 of the original computers were still operating, often with 3 or more students having to share their use in class. Hence, assignment work for the subject became cumbersome, frustrations mounted and Mr Lal bore the brunt of every computer-related excuse in the manual.

While the CQU Fiji donation is just a start for what the school’s staff hope to see as `a lab for the future’, Shelvin Lal is just thankful that his classes can now run a little more efficiently.

There may not be air-conditioning, high-speed internet connection or cutting-edge software, but at least the excuses have been silenced. For now.

Photo: Jonathan Purdy (FIC Campus Director) and Shelvin Lal (Teacher from John Wesley College).