iSchool Slideshow

Revolutionising African EducationReinventing Education in Africa

• Rapid GDP growth (per capita $1,413, 22nd inAfrica: RSA $8,066; Malawi $350; DRC $215)accompanied by mobile phone (thus internet)coverage of 90% of population: WiMAX 40%ICT Development in ZambiaMbalaMansaKasamaMpikaSerenjeKabweLusakaKaribaChomaV/FallsKazungulaKatimaMonguKitweLuanoSolweziZESCO Optical FibreNetworkChipataKasempaKaomaLumwanaTRANSMISSIONCAPACITY: 2.5 Gbps

• Arrival of netbooks critical:Now lower-cost tablets(<$100), running whole daywithout mains power (60+%of primary schools have nopower) and moveablebetween classrooms.• Smart phones (<$50)becoming an option• And lower solar powerrequirements: individual andschool, with reducing pricesICT Development - DevicesReinventing Education in Africa

Education in Zambia• Total population of Zambia: 13m• 8,800 schools (3,500 community schools), 500 ofwhich cover full secondary syllabus• Children in school: 3.7m(2.44m of primary age)• 77,000 teachers• Majority of schools in ruralareas• Primary education isfreeMap showing theschools in ZambiaReinventing Education in Africa

Issues in Education• Rapidly rising population (100m by2100) means government struggles toexpand school infrastructure• Community schools now educate 40%of all students, but 85% of their teachersare untrained• The standard method of teaching isthrough rote, memorised learning. Thuschildren who have some knowledge butlittle understanding.• Large class sizes. Low literacy levels.Reinventing Education in Africa

Issues in Education• Most children are without text books• High teacher attrition, especially in rural areas• High levels of absenteeism (students and teachers: thelatter above 40%)• 20+% children leave before the end of primary• In reality 80+% of children leave school functionallyilliterate and with poor numeracy skills.Reinventing Education in Africa

The Opportunity• eLearning has a real potential for change now that:– The cost of computer devices has fallen below $100– The devices are robust and reliable and will last a fullday without mains power– They are personalised and canbe carried to classrooms: no additionalbuilding is needed– They can be charged off lower-end solar power– Most of the population is now covered by mobile phonesignal, and therefore internet connectivity– There is a growing willingness to pay for educationReinventing Education in Africa

The iSchool ‘Product’iSchool has created a ‘Total Learning Environment’covering the 7 grades of Primary Schooleducation, with 3 components:Reinventing Education in Africa1. Detailed lesson plans forteachers for every one of5,000 lessons. Allsubjects, allgrades, covering the entireZambian curriculum, andguiding the teachertowards interactiveenquiry-based learning.

2. Interactive localised audio-visual material for students for everyother lesson. For early grades all material is in 8 of the Zambianvernacular languages as well as English. 12,000 lessons in all. Alllearning material approved by the Ministry of Education. This is thefirst time that many children will have access to quality learningmaterial in their own language.Reinventing Education in Africa

The iSchool ‘Product’3. A one year teacher training course (face to face, then onlineand via remote mentoring) promoting active learning.Reinventing Education in Africa

The iSchool ‘Product’The iSchool methodology, in its prescriptive andcomprehensive nature, is believed to be unique and isdesigned to make a major impact on education.Reinventing Education in AfricaIt changes the way teachingis done (group work andinteractive learning)…..and changes the learning, butusing locally appropriate ideasand materials…

Within one story there is a lot of learning

And from that story, many other lessons are derived…

The iSchool Objectives‘To create school leavers who will know where to find and howto manipulate information; who will be problem solvers, and life-long learners; and who will be able to contribute to a neweconomic environment and take their place in a knowledgeeconomy.And to make teachers facilitatorsrather than the source of knowledge’Reinventing Education in Africa

The Delivery MechanismiSchool eLearning material is delivered via theZEduPad, a high-quality low-cost 7” Androidtablet, pre-loaded with all content in 32GB flashmemory. No Internet connection is required, butcan be used if present.Revolutionising Education in Africa

The ZEduPadThere are 3 versions:1. Home Learner. Complete with full learning material,plus homework modules, and other safe educationaland entertainment content.Revolutionising Education in Africa

The ZEduPad2. School Learner. Full learningmaterial and research content.Designed for multiple use goingstraight to appropriate lessons.3. Teacher. With all the studentcontent plus lesson plans and fullteacher training materials. Theteacher also has a battery-poweredLED projector whichconnects to their tablet.Reinventing Education in Africa

Testing in SchoolsTrialing in schools (of the learning material and teaching styles –using Classmate computers) has been going on with 2,000Grade 1, 2 and 3 children for 2.5 years.There has been significant success in terms of reducedabsenteeism and enjoyment of learning. Literacy rates up 118%,maths up by 58% and critical thinking by 10% at Grade 2compared to equivalent non-iSchool schools.Reinventing Education in Africa

From Teacher Surveys:Children more self-directedMore alert and attentive when listening to the storyMore self-confident and shows leadership qualities and critical reasoningAble to enjoy peer-to-peer teaching going on , some slower learners graduating to regular classesAble to enjoy more interactive classroom atmosphere, helps the weaker pupils to keep upAttends school more regularlyAbsenteeism drastically reduced (‘Because the kids like the computers’)Absenteeism is just not thereChildren making sure their parents actually go and tell the school why they are absent now, i.e. trulysickThey want to know what is happening to Precious (one of the iSchool Characters)All round improvement: Improved reading, writing, and spellingThis is my first Gr. 1 class that can write to my dictation, and I’ve been doing Gr. 1 for a long timeI’ve never had a Gr. 2 class who can read beforeImproved EnglishGreater CreativityBetter Listening Skills - can retell stories from the lesson without leaving out many detailsGreater voice - feel freer to answer and say their viewsComputer teacher literacy: ‘Now I have Internet, email Skype’ ‘I can type’Peer learning helps cater to slow learnersIncreased interest in teaching, more motivated, eager; increased interaction with the kidsReinventing Education in Africa

iSchool puts the ‘fun’ into learningReinventing Education in Africa

Reinventing Education in Africa..and creates a new generation of those thinkingfor themselves

CostsThe ZEduPad will be sold at K1,200 ($220)including both the hardware and all thelearning material.There are also keyboards, internetconnections etc. for small additional costs.This brings the cost for an average smallschool (with pupil and teacher tablets, andprojectors) to ~K5 ($1) per child per month.For larger schools it is ~K2.5 ($0.5). Thesecosts will come down with volume / time.Reinventing Education in Africa

iSchool-in-a-boxCovering all school needs, and bearing inmind that all equipment can be run offmains or solar electric power.Reinventing Education in AfricaCharging CabinetiSchool TabletInternetConnectionIndividual Solar Charger School SolarClassroom ResourceBoxLEDProjectorand batteryPrinting Facilities

How to buyFrom June 2013 the ZEduPad will be soldthrough outlets including:• Flagship stores in key shopping centres.• A special centre for school sales withvirtual simulation of different classroomenvironments.• Telco/ISP offices and internetcafé facilities throughout the country,including all provincial capitals.• In-store iSchool-manned stalls inkey major retail chains such as Pick’n’Pay.• In schools and via direct sales• Via regional agentsReinventing Education in Africa

Alternative Delivery Platforms• The same eLearning content can bedelivered via Intel Classmate stylenetbooks, specially built for primary schoolchildren. There is a version of theClassmate with all material pre-loaded, orone where material is delivered via a localsolid-state server, connected to theinternet for periodic updating.• The iSchool material can also beaccessed directly over the internet, forthose with a good enough connection,anywhere in the world. There areindividual or school subscription models,linked to PayPal.Reinventing Education in Africa

SustainabilityiSchool has a team specifically working on sustainability with theobjective of ensuring that the communities in which schoolsoperate make full use of the new school facilities and thus arewilling to contribute to costs.Additional information systems around agriculture (includingtrading) and health have been developed to add benefit to ruralcommunities. These again are in local language and withZambia-specific information.Reinventing Education in Africa

External Markets• A major market is seen in other Africancountries.• Whereas in Zambia most tablets willoperate offline (due to the size, price, andoutreach of the data network), in marketssuch as South Africa the tablets can beopened up to provide a richer educationalenvironment benefitting from internetconnectivity, and driving revenues for themobile operators in a new younger market.• The content can still be fully protected andoffered as education, and may gain taxbenefits from that.Reinventing Education in AfricaAfrica by GDP

iSchool ZambiaWill become a major player ineducation in Africa.It has the power to create a newgeneration of ICT-literate schoolleavers ready to ‘break themould’; to solve their communityproblems; to create new jobs; toimprove their lives; to take part indemocracy; and build theeconomy.Reinventing Education in Africa

"Since we cannot know what knowledge will bemost needed in the future, it is senseless to tryto teach it in advance.Instead, we should try to turn out people wholove learning so much and learn so well thatthey will be able to learn whatever needs to belearned.“John Holt –Educator and Author

Contact DetailsiSchool ZambiaStand 37889, Lunsemfwa Road, Kalundu, Lusaka, ZambiaMail: PO Box 247, P/Bag E891, LusakaTel: +260-211-845161Email: info@ischool.zmWeb: www.ischool.zmCompany Registration Number: 72644Reinventing Education in Africa

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iSchool Slideshow

by Mark Bennett

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