A scalable and sustainable initiative is empowering teachers to deliver better learning outcomes in some of the most deprived areas of Africa.

Many children in sub-Saharan Africa – over 400,000 in Ghana alone according to 2014 UNESCO estimates – either don’t go to school or eventually drop out of education altogether. The scale of the challenge is considerable to say the least, yet one successful program has recently shown how directed investment in technology can make a significant impact within a relatively short time.

The results from an independent evaluation of Train for Tomorrow demonstrated how higher quality teaching can help reverse such negative trends and inspire more children in the world’s most deprived areas to attend school and complete their education.

Over 400,000 children in sub-Saharan Africa don't access education
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Many teachers in countries like Ghana don't have any formal training
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What makes programmes like this so crucial is the fact that such a large proportion of teachers in countries like Ghana haven’t received formal training. According to the Ghanaian Ministry of Education, 45 percent of primary school teachers and 30 percent of those teaching junior high are untrained. This amounts to a staggering 90,000 working teachers in need of acquiring such skills.

Under the Train for Tomorrow programme – which is run by the Varkey Foundation and funded through a $2 million USD grant from philanthropic organization Dubai Cares – 40 ‘hub’ schools were provided with solar powered video-link equipment. This enabled highly qualified teacher trainers based in the country’s capital Accra to hold regular interactive training sessions at those hub schools, where head teachers and school leaders from surrounding areas come to receive their training.

Train for Tomorrow enables qualified teachers to share their knowledge remotely
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The focus of those sessions was on best practice teaching methods and techniques which have been proven to deliver better quality educational outcomes, such as group work, critical thinking, use of higher order thinking skills, reflection and analysis.

40 schools were provided with solar powered video-link equipment
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The program relies on a ripple effect whereby the head teachers and school leaders who participate in the hub school sessions then repeat the training in their own school for other teachers. This strategy managed to amplify the reach of the programme to nearly 5,000 teachers and their 90,000 students. Initially operating from three studios, the foundation has now expanded that number to five larger facilities, all equipped with the latest technology.

An evaluation conducted by Dalberg Global Development Associates showed that teachers going through Train for Tomorrow demonstrated statistically significant improvement in instructional performance. Teachers in the 40 hub schools showed significant improvement in their teaching techniques, demonstrably encouraging cooperative learning – which enhances retention of learning through group work – increased from 13% in the baseline analysis to 60%

“The results of this independent evaluation clearly demonstrate that pioneering EdTech can improve learning in parts of the world that are often off the power grid, have limited access to the internet and have few resources to share,” says Vikas Pota, CEO of the Varkey Foundation.

Pota also added that he hopes the results will encourage more investors to support similar projects, as well as inspiring technology entrepreneurs to come forward with fresh ideas that are hardy enough to improve education where it is needed the most.

Teachers going through the programme significantly improved their performace
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This technology, which earlier this year was used to deliver the world’s first satellite-enabled interactive distance learning project to a Refugee Camp, was also successfully deployed by the Varkey Foundation for the Making Ghanaian Girls Great! (MGCubed) project.

MGCubed is a three-year pilot project funded by the Department for International Development (DFID)’s Girls’ Education Challenge (GEC) which used interactive distance learning technology to deliver Maths and English lessons daily to more than 10,000 pupils in 72 of Ghana’s most deprived communities. In addition to delivering after-school club activities covering crucial topics such as reproductive health, financial literacy, entrepreneurship, career guidance and the environment, the MGCubed model was shown to have a significant positive impact on literacy and numeracy skills.

According to the Varkey Foundation, this is a highly replicable model
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Professional Learning Networks have long-lasting impact on teachers’ development
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According to Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA) pupils participating in that programme were able to read between 3.21-3.74 more words per minute than those in regular classes, and in numeracy tests MGCubed teaching has been found to increase average scores by the equivalent of one school year.

Professional Learning Networks encouraged by such projects have been shown to have long-lasting positive impacts on teachers’ professional development, and form the basis of scalability and sustainability of the initiatives. Since participants will be able to rely on one another for advice, evaluation and support for the continuous improvement of their own practice, their experience and expertise can be constantly communicated and amplified.

According to the Varkey Foundation, this is a highly replicable model, since the educational and technical expertise deployed create a significant body of assets that can be reused either within the original hub schools, or through installation of the technology package in further schools. The nature of the model means that after the fixed infrastructure costs are paid for, operating costs are minimal, therefore making the long-term effects far reaching and enduring.

“With Train for Tomorrow, our aim is to improve the quality of teaching, and create a positive teaching and learning experience for children in Ghana, through an innovative program model utilizing technology,” adds His Excellency Tariq Al Gurg, Chief Executive Officer at Dubai Cares. “The learnings from the final evaluation of the program which has concluded, will contribute to the growing evidence surrounding teacher training modalities, helping strengthen the design and delivery of teacher training programs in developing countries.”

This article was originally published on The Huffington Post

How Pioneering EdTech is Empowering Teachers in Africa https://t.co/Hcitr4BQWv via @HuffPostBlog

— Alice Bonasio (@alicebonasio) November 20, 2017

Alice Bonasio is a VR Consultant and Tech Trends’ Editor in Chief. She also regularly writes for Fast Company, Ars Technica, Quartz, Wired and others. Connect with her on LinkedIn and follow @alicebonasio and @techtrends_tech on Twitter.

The post Amplifying the Impact of Teaching Through Technology appeared first on Tech Trends.

The world’s first satellite-enabled interactive distance learning project is enabling refugee children in Ghana to continue with their education

We tend to think of refugee camps as temporary structures, but most of us fail to realize that many people live in them for several years. This presents serious challenges, specially for children who face serious danger of falling behind with their schooling or dropping out of education altogether as it can be very difficult to get qualified teachers to reach the camps on a regular basis.

But now technology is bringing a cost-effective and viable solution to that problem, in a pilot project recently trialled at the Ampain Refugee Camp in Western Ghana. The camp was established back in 2011 to shelter displaced Ivoirians fleeing the hostilities following the November 2010 Côte d’Ivoire Presidential elections. It is currently home to over 3,000 people, including around 225 school-age children who go to the Ampain Primary school established within the camp.

The Varkey Foundation Teach to Reach Remote Classrooms Project is the first of its kind
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The Varkey Foundation Teach to Reach Remote Classrooms Project (TRC) funded by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is the world’s first satellite enabled live two-way interactive distance learning programme for children living in a refugee camp. Each classroom in the school is equipped with a projector and a low-cost durable computer to receive lessons via a solar-powered satellite link. Since April, the foundation has been running interactive distance lessons from qualified teachers based at its studio in Accra to support the children in the camp with their learning.

While technologies such as Skype have been used for distance learning solutions in the past, but this is the first live, interactive two-way satellite enabled project to reach refugee children in sub-Saharan Africa
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The goal of the Ampaign project is to prove that the concept works in an emergency situation to increase children’s school attendance
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According to Vikas Pota, CEO of the Varkey Foundation, the goal of the Ampaign project is to prove that the concept works in an emergency situation to increase children’s school attendance and build opportunities for teachers and community members that directly impact learning for pupils.

“This project can make a real difference because it is quick to mobilize and can be scaled up, delivering lessons to more refugee settings around the globe. Most importantly, it is a long-lasting solution which is what is required due to the length of time that children often end up staying in refugee camps,” he says.

While technologies such as Skype have been used for distance learning solutions in the past, but this is the first live, interactive two-way satellite enabled project to reach refugee children in sub-Saharan Africa. The Ampain primary school has been fitted with a satellite dish, which, through solar powered technology, receives a live link to highly qualified teachers in a studio in Accra who broadcast lessons direct to the refugee camp. Each classroom has a projector so all the children can see the teacher giving the lessons, and each classroom has also been provided with a computer so that children can interact with the teacher in a direct, live, two-way link.

This project can make a real difference because it is quick to mobilize and can be scaled up
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This allows the refugee children – who are currently out of school and at risk of dropping out of education – to not only catch up with their basic education through literacy and numeracy lessons, but also learn the language of their host country, which is crucial for integration.

Ms. Ioli Kimyaci, UNHCR Ghana Country Representative says that this is a cost-effective way to enable children who otherwise would have been denied a quality education to have access to qualified teachers. “The beauty of this project is that it allows one good teacher’s reach to extend anywhere with the use of satellite technology, solar powered computer hardware and an interactive live feed inside the classroom,” she says.

The program also offers after-school sessions for both boys and girls to address gender specific issues and life skills, helping to create a safe environment that empowers pupils with leadership and decision-making skills.

The Teach to Reach program is based on the successful Making Ghanaian Girls Great! project
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The “Wonder Women” after-school program, for example, teaches young girls about reproductive health, preventing early pregnancy, human rights awareness and financial literacy. It also emphasizes leadership skills that develop girls’ ability to advocate for themselves, interact with leaders in their community and stand up for issues important to them. The goal is to raise their self esteem and empower them to stay in school and reach their full potential.

Boys also learn these core skills to support them with specific challenges they face and encourage them to continue in their schooling, while also tackling harmful gender stereotypes through discussion and role-play, showing boys how a change in their behavior can help their sisters and female peers, and therefore their entire communities.

“Every child deserves an education, but refugees in particular are more often than not denied this right. According to UNESCO, refugees are five times more likely to be out of school than the global average. More than half of the 6m school-age children under UNESCO’s mandate have no school to go to, with some 1.75m refugee children not in primary school and 1.95m refugee adolescents not in secondary school,” says Leonora Dowley, Ghana Country Director at the Varkey Foundation. “What makes this project so exciting is that gives refugee children access to high quality teachers and does so extremely cost-effectively – we can reach more than 200 children who otherwise would not be getting any education at low cost but with significant results.”

The Teach to Reach program is based on the successful Making Ghanaian Girls Great! project (known as MGCubed), aimed at enhancing the quality of education for more than 10,000 marginalized children in Ghana since it was established in 2014. The Varkey Foundation is part of the #WithRefugees Coalition who are supporting the #WithRefugees campaign, a group of more than 100 universities, FBOs, youth groups, UN Agencies, and NGOs working with UNHCR to promote tolerance and respect for persons forced to flee. It also founded the Global Teacher Prize to shine a spotlight on the incredible work teachers do all over the world.

“Nothing beats having access to a great teacher who can add important context, stimulate discussion among children to help them truly grasp what they’re learning and broaden young minds,” says Dowley. “We believe it’s a highly replicable solution that could be deployed in other settings, and given the extent of the refugee crisis it will be exciting to see how things could develop on this front in future,” concludes Dowley.

This article was originally published on IDG Connect

How technology is helping education reach refugee children, by @alicebonasio from @CIOonline https://t.co/9UgA59FCJA

— Technology Experts (@IDGCN) June 27, 2017

For companies looking to gain a competitive edge through technology, Tech Trends offers strategic Virtual Reality and Digital Transformation Consultancy services tailored to your brand.

Alice Bonasio is a VR and Digital Transformation Consultant and Tech Trends’ Editor in Chief. She also regularly writes for Fast Company, Ars Technica, Quartz, Wired and others. Connect with her on LinkedIn and follow @alicebonasio on Twitter.

The post Technology Beaming Hope to Refugees appeared first on Tech Trends.

The UK has a serious language deficit issue that’s estimated to cost its economy a staggering £48 billion every year. It also faces considerable challenges around integration, which must be tackled if we’re to ever overcome the toxic rhetoric around Brexit and ongoing global refugee crisis.

The language deficit problem costs the UK economy £48 billion a year
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And that’s exactly what a recently launched social enterprise called Chatterbox proposes to do with a beautifully elegant solution. It uses technology to bring together the unique existing skills of those refugees with demand in the host nation by employing them to teach their own language and culture in their adopted country.

“Chatterbox teachers are doctors, lawyers, engineers and academics – highly skilled professionals with a lot to offer,” says Chatterbox founder Mursal Hedayat, who herself came to the UK as a refugee from Afghanistan. “It’s fantastic for them to engage in stimulating work whilst learning more about the way of life here,” she explains.

There are over 117,000 people with refugee status living in the UK, yet despite having above average levels of education and training, they are much more likely to be unemployed and in poverty. The way that government policy allocates them to a particular area often sees people housed in places where there are relatively few employment opportunities, which is something the online learning element of the Chatterbox platform helps to address, by allowing them to engage with students regardless of their location. This is supported by Chatterbox’s teacher training programme provides a platform for them to network, build their confidence, and improve their overall employability by gaining relevant UK work experience.

“I don’t want to be a burden on the government, I want to be an asset, ” says Kainaaz, a Chatterbox tutor and exiled film producer and director.

Even though the project is still in pilot phase, it has already been commissioned by SOAS University of London to deliver 400 hours of conversation practice to its students. The institution – which specializes in the study of the languages and culture of Asia, Africa and the Near and Middle East – will allow students taking a language as part of any of their degree courses to book one-hour sessions with native speakers of the language they are learning to practice and improve speaking and listening skills.

In spite of above-average education and training refugees are more likely to be unemployed
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Lutz Martens, Dean of Faculty of Languages and Cultures at SOAS and a specialist on rare African dialects, explains that the opportunity for students to build their confidence and fluency through immersive learning with a native speaker is invaluable:

“We teach more than 30 languages, and for half of these, we are the only UK University teaching them,” he explains. “Here at SOAS we believe that languages are the key to understanding people, regions, societies and cultures – and indeed ourselves. It offers them a unique way to better understand the cultural, social and historical background in which the language is spoken. The project builds on the cultural and academic expertise of refugees in the UK and highlights the enriching contribution they make to our communities.”

Chatterbox are now looking to build similar partnerships with other Higher Education institutions in the UK ahead of their public launch which will take place later in 2017. At that point individual students will also be able to use the platform to book lessons in a variety of languages including various dialects of Arabic and Persian as well as Swahili, Korean and Spanish.

Chatterbox technology can help bridge the gap between refugee skills and demand
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Alice Bonasio is a VR Consultant and Tech Trends’ Editor in Chief. She also regularly writes for Fast Company, Ars Technica, Quartz, Wired and others. Connect with her on LinkedIn and follow @alicebonasio on Twitter.

The post Integrating Refugees Through Language Learning appeared first on Tech Trends.