Cisco and Cambodian Ministry of Education...... Cambodian, Ministry, Cisco, Education

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia, August 21, 2007 -
+ ^+ I& H5 d$ b) t# `
, G# s8 V* r9 S0 L+ ~( oCisco and Cambodian Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport to Deliver Advanced Networking Skills to Educators in CambodiaThe Ministry of Education,Youth and Sport in Cambodia and Cisco® have agreed to train up to 25teachers in five teacher education institutes (TEIs) in the skillsneeded to use information and communications technology (ICT) in theclassroom.
. T# V* [# ~/ q The initiative is a part of the larger UNESCO Next-Generation (NextGen) Project, for which Cisco has pledged financial and resourcecontributions through the Cisco Networking Academy®.
$ J# O2 k* U" a& `  The Next Gen project was begun in recognition of the need foreffective programs to prepare pre-service teachers to use ICT toenhance teaching and learning. The project aims to build the capacityof TEIs in the Asia-Pacific region to prepare the next generation ofteachers. Ten countries in Asia are taking part in the Next GenProject: Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, People'sRepublic of China, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam. Ineach of these countries, three TEIs are participating in projectactivities, making a total of 30 participating TEIs.
5 i+ B; b2 R8 e: q) o  v" gUnder the agreement, Cisco will integrate TEIs into existingNetworking Academies that have the know-how to develop the ICT skillsof pre-service teachers. Lead trainers from each TEI will attendinstructor-training sessions in the Cisco Networking Academy's ITEssentials Software and Hardware and IT Essentials NetworkingFundamentals curriculums. Training will be provided by Cisco Networkingregional academies in each country over 10 days. Once trained, theinstructors will offer the Networking Academy curriculum to pre-serviceteachers and start a Networking Academy in their TEI.* Q$ E  z2 T7 Y8 ~- l2 s) i7 _9 B/ I
"A strong ICT education gives our youth the opportunity and accessto become participating members in the knowledge-based and globalizedworld we live in. The joint initiative with Cisco provides us with thefootprint for turning this opportunity into a reality in Cambodia. Theskills that the TEIs will gain will benefit not only them but also theCambodian economy as a whole," said Kol Pheng, Cambodia's seniorminister and the minister of education, youth and sport.
8 S9 G' K) f% O2 I% o& XAccording to Sandy Walsh, regional manager of the Cisco NetworkingAcademy Program and Corporate Responsibility for Asia Pacific, "TheTeacher Education Institutes program allows us to educate the peoplewho are tasked with teaching the next generation of Internet users. TheInternet has changed the way people learn, and it enables anytime,anywhere learning for all students, regardless of location,socioeconomic status, gender, or race. Cisco is committed to continuingthose advances, partnering with educators and others to develop thetools, applications, technology and curriculums to make the Internetand education the great equalizers in the global economy.". {. R; F! M, S* j% s
The Next Generation of Teachers Project is guided by the vision ofthe director of the UNESCO Asia and Pacific Regional Bureau forEducation in Bangkok, Sheldon Shaeffer, who said: "By 2008, allregional member states will be in a position to offer teachers aneducation on how and when to best use technologies for teaching andlearning, through training that is integrated in all nationalpre-service teacher training institutions in the Asia-Pacific region.Learners will directly benefit from this new generation ofwell-educated teachers, who will be empowered to use technologies andto facilitate the learners' active participation in learning, and inthe knowledge of societies and economies."
1 e& ~% f7 S' e) q/ B. w& x                                           q) y' W: y! M4 x# G
About Cisco SystemsCisco, (NASDAQ: CSCO), is the worldwide leader in networking thattransforms how people connect, communicate and collaborate. Informationabout Cisco can be found at http://www.cisco.com. For ongoing news, please go to http://newsroom.cisco.com. Asia Pacific news and information are available at www.cisco.com/asiapac/news. Cisco products are supplied in Cambodia by Cisco Systems International, BV.
9 k8 ^0 Y% h* W' Z, ^

# # #

: }$ ~6 c4 I! J' k6 `Cisco, the Cisco logo, Cisco Systems, and Networking Academy areregistered trademarks or trademarks of Cisco Systems, Inc. and/or itsaffiliates in the United States and certain other countries. All othertrademarks mentioned in this document are the property of theirrespective owners. The use of the word partner does not indicate apartnership relationship between Cisco and any other company. Thisdocument is Cisco Public Information.