Denis Opudo
More than one billion children do not access quality education. The number is on the rise and this is alarming given that we are in the 21st century. Quality education should be mandatory for everyone. This is irrespective of where they live and their financial backgrounds. This is according to Sunny Varkey the founder of Varkey Foundation and the Next Billion Prize. Next Billion Prize was launched to recognize the ability of technology in solving education problems. The problems affecting the sector have proven to be hard to solve by many politicians.
The Varkey Foundation launched the Next Billion Edtech Prize Institute. It aimed at recognizing the role of innovative technology in education. This is specifically in developing countries and low-income areas. More than 40 startups were shortlisted to showcase for the ‘Next Billion’ Edtech Prize. Thereafter the number was reduced to six finalists. The six included Localized Inc from USA and MENA, New York-based Learning Machine and The Biz Nation from Colombia. The six pitched to the panelists comprising of philanthropic investors. There were also venture capitalists and experts in edtech and learning science. Senior education policymakers and a live audience of Global Education & Skills Forum (GESF) delegates were also present. The audience was to take part in the voting role. The delegates comprised of renowned education figures from social, public and private sectors.
Out of the six finalists, three of them emerged winners. The three winners will take home $25,000. They will also have an opportunity to pilot their technology in partner schools. The schools are in Western Capetown in South Africa. The three startups were Chatterbox from the UK, Nigerian based Dot Learn and TeachMeNow from UAE.
Dot Learn is a video e-learning platform that serves individuals in low-income areas. It works in such areas since the areas do not have fast affordable network coverage. It uses a technology that reduces the file-size of learning videos. The video requires 1/100th of the bandwidth to watch. According to the data prices in Nigeria and Kenya, students can get five hours of online learning at a cost of $0.014. The price is the same as that of sending a single text message. On the other hand, Chatterbox is an online language school operated by refugees. The platform makes good use of the professionalism possessed by the refugees.
It gives them work as an online and one on one person language teachers. The startup is available in many universities in the UK. It also has customers in major corporations and non-profits. TeachMeNow links experts, teachers, and mentors to learners. The technology harmonizes live virtual sessions, payments, and scheduling. The three can work on any device. It helps many teachers to run their own online ventures and some of them raised $100,000 in 2017. The first class was carried out between professors in Venezuela who taught a student in Saudi Arabia the Spanish language.
