This document describes a proposed distance mentoring system called Mobile Gurukul that would allow teachers in India to ask questions and receive answers via mobile phones. It aims to address challenges with traditional computer-based teacher training by leveraging the widespread availability of mobile phones. A pilot program would test the concept across 65 teachers in 3 locations with varying levels of encouragement and support. Follow-up surveys and analysis of question patterns would assess whether the system helps teachers and is sustainable. The goal is to create an ongoing virtual community for sharing and developing teaching knowledge.

1. Technology as an Enabler in
Teacher Professional
Development?
Mobile Gurukul - A Teacher’s Aide
Mujahidul Islam
Radha Ganesan
Educational Technology & Design (ETD) - URC
July 4, 2012

2. Technology based intervention in education
• Typical challenges with computer-based
intervention
– Hardware (in)accessibility
– Lack of training and insufficient operational skills
– Infrastructure bottlenecks
– Questionable sustainability
• How could we creatively utilize existing
technologies to aid education and educators?

3. Technology access in India
70
61.4
60
50
40 %age of Mobile
Subscriptions
30 %age of households
with computers
20
%age of Internet
10 7.9 8.5 penetration
4.5 6.1
0.3 0.5
0
2000 2005 2010
Year

4. Schools with ICTs in India (DISE, 2010-11)
schools with computers %age of rural schools
schools without computer %age of urban schools
19% 13%
81% 87%
functional computer Schools with CAL
non-functional computers Schools without CAL
17% 15%
83% 85%

5. Mobile phones - widely used access device
Population with a Mobile Phone
70
61.4
60
Percentage of Population
50
40
30
20
10 7.9
0.3
0
2000 2005 2010
Calendar Year

6. Mobile in Majority World
No need of permanent electricity
Affordability
Easy to use audio and text interface
Easy maintenance
Accessibility

7. Mobile Gurukul
What is it?
• A distance mentoring system for school teachers over
mobile phones
Features of Mobile Gurukul
 Blends the individuality of phones to preserve
anonymity
 Utilizes web technology for back-end support and
archiving
What it is not
– A replacement mechanism for systematic and
ongoing professional development

8. A Background
• Initiated at IIIT, Bangalore in 2010. The idea was
initially conceptualized by Prof. Michal
Yerushalamy, University of Haifa, Israel.
• Focus was on creating a successful
Technological Infrastructure
• Tested the concept at one school and with 5
organizations working in the education sector

9. Concept Design
Teacher asks questions
Teachers can use their mobile through Mobile Phone
phones to use txtweb apps Txtweb Mentor sees the question
on the Mobile Gurukul
which will help them more on
Webpage
their queries. Teachers can
also access previously
answered questions. Internet
Mentor sends the answer
through the internet either
TOI by recording their audio or
Portal entering text
Teacher receives the answer on
her Mobile Phone in the form of an Teachers will be suggested
audio or a text . to visit the portal for
relevant resources to
deepen understanding
Teacher can respond back
to the answer and continue
the discussion

10. Roles
• Teachers
– Pose question and receives the answer (mobile
phone)
• Mentors (current or ex-teachers, Univ faculty, SMEs
)
– Respond to the questions asked
– Document/classify the questions after answering
• Admin
– Manages the questions and answers
– Ensures all the questions are being answered within
the given time
• Vendors
– Build the tech infrastructure (Response channel: IVR
and Web Application)

11. Research Method
Duration: Pilot phase for 8 weeks
Location: APF schools
Number of teachers: 65
Control Group
Site C: Dhamtari
Minimal Inputs: A
simple announcement
about the service will
Site A: Sirohi and be made.
Udhamsinghnagar. No demonstration and
no reminders to ask
Max Inputs: Active questions
encouragement to utilize Site B: Tonk and
the service Uttarkashi
Teachers will be Medium Inputs:
encouraged to ask at Announcement + ‘How
least one question to use’ demonstration.
everyday. A daily A weekly reminder to
reminder to ask ask questions will be
questions. sent via SMS

12. Process
• Teachers pose queries/receive responses by calling
or texting
• Queries will be organized and displayed through the
Mobile Gurukul website
• Mentors can view the questions and record their
answers
• Mentors will answer the queries through
 Recorded voice answers sent as a recorded
message
 Text message sent as an SMS
 Directly calling the phone number

13. We assume that:
• Teachers are comfortable using mobile phones to call
and send SMS
• Teachers want to have periodic access to
professional assistance
• Teacher’s reluctance to use (i.e., cost concerns) can
be overcome
• Mentors will provide relevant and useful responses
• Asynchronous method using Short voice clips and
SMS can help answer the queries of the teachers
• (If successful) project can be scaled

14. Follow-up & Anticipated Outcomes
Post-pilot survey of teachers to assess
 Did the teachers use it?
 Do the teachers find the service useful and
effective?
 Are the teachers likely to use it again?
 Probable bottlenecks in using the service (e.g., cost
of a call)
Assessment at the back-end
 Ease of use (i.e., from a workflow standpoint)
 What kind of problems and responses are most
effective
 Technological limitations (e.g., too many abandoned
calls?)
 Is it scalable?

15. Anticipated Outcomes
• Teachers use this system (when needed) to get their
questions resolved by mentors
• A mobile based virtual community of teachers where
they share, collaborate and construct knowledge
• Teachers who start here by asking questions, eventually
start answering other’s queries
• Question Bank which informs the policy
makers, textbook writers, teacher educators about the
needs of so many teachers who use this service

16. Is this an idea worth pursuing? Send an SMS ‘Yes/No’ to 9035319348

17. Would you like to follow this project?
Would you like to participate as a
mentor?
Send us an email - etd.apf@gmail.com

18. Specific Questions
• What motivates teachers to participate in voluntary professional
development services/programs?
• Will teachers use virtual systems and services to overcome
feelings/experiences of isolation?
• What type of knowledge are teachers seeking and what knowledge
do they value?
• Is there a difference in the knowledge sought by primary and
secondary school teachers across subject areas?
• What role does the distance-mentoring system offered by Mobile
Gurukul is used by the teachers who are already motivated to teach
effectively in their teaching and learning spaces?
• How many and what types of questions are asked frequently? What
types of answers are easy to comprehend and understand through a
mobile based mentoring system? Are the responses understandable
and do they make sense to the teachers?

19. • Do the mentors prove to be helpful to them in their search for the
answer? How do we ensure deeper engagement or follow-up
questions to be asked in relation to the answer? One answer or
multiple aspects of the possible answers?(Answer by multiple
mentors) What questions lend well for clear cut/focused/short
response? How do we ensure continuous engagement with content
area?
• Asynchronous answering of the questions – what is the best way to
reach the teacher? How can they be delivered by using short voice
clips or text messages? How do we facilitate direct interactions
between the teacher and the mentor? Do teachers prefer
sending/receiving text or voice messages? Is there a need to bring
any technical or workflow changes based on the feedback of the
users (Teachers and Mentors)? Etc.