OpenIDEO
Cancel
OpenIDEO is an open innovation platform. Join our global community to solve big challenges for social good. Sign Up / Login or Learn more
Phase: Review

Online Education without Borders (EwD) in emergency

P4T aims to create a digital & online education program to address disrupted education challenge for refugees in Kyangwali, Hoima, Uganda.

Photo of Daniel Ameny
9 3

Written by

What problem does your innovation solve?

Online Education without Borders (EwD) in emergency is an innovative solution to address three major education challenges: inaccessibility to basic and higher education, language and curriculum barriers that differ from their home countries, and lack of money to pay for higher education. In Uganda, there are 1,277,476 refugees from 9 countries (InterAid Uganda). More than 92% live in rural settlements with no access to quality education and no means of livelihood.

Explain your innovation.

Online Education without Borders (EwD) in emergency is a program which serves two purposes: availing complete digital national curriculum in tablets (edutabs) to young children, and enabling access to free online courses for youth whose education was disrupted. The digital curriculum customizes and personalizes learning in a way that is rigorous and engaging for students. The standards-based curriculum tracks all student activity to enable instructional differentiation. Built-in formative assessment activities, such as short writing prompts and vocabulary exercises, provide the student and teacher with real-time feedback on academic mastery to enable appropriate personalization. Online course program will enroll students in to courses that are offered online either as a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) which is an online course aimed at unlimited participation and open access via the web, or admission to universities with free courses platforms such as University of People, Open University, PDMF University and the Edx platform of Harvard University. The Refugee youth will also be able to get scholarships for paid online courses which they can do at the EwB center. Digital curriculum and online courses are trending with many developments by samsung, amplify, Wall Street Journal, Universities and governments etc. The children or youth share learning resources at the center and and so they need not to buy a computer or tablet that they can not afford hence sustainability

Who benefits?

The online EwD in emergency program will benefit both males and females in Uganda starting from Kyangwali, although priorities will be put on enrolling and promoting girl child education who will be encouraged and favoured. There are over 40,000 refugees in Kyangwali Refugee Settlement alone and over 1,277,476 refugees in Uganda (over 30% are youth and 50% children). 500 children aged 3-15 years old will access quality education using the digital curriculum, which will also give them exposure to technology in education. This number will increase by at least 50 children every year. P4T is already providing Early Childhood Education and Primary Education to more than 300 children. 300 youth aged 15-35 years old will be enrolled in various international certificate, diploma and degree programs through MOOC, free course universities and scholarships. This number will double in the second year and increase substantially every other year. We have more than 100 youth in our various program.

How is your innovation unique?

Online EwD in emergency will deliver free quality education with the touch of technology; enabling interactive learning and excellence. This is different from what the government schools around are doing. The youth program in this project is going to be one of its kind in Uganda because it will be able to provide refugees with international curriculum of their home countries, to break the language and curriculum barriers that they currently face. P4T has already been providing better quality education in Kyangwali and people trust it. We also have potential collaborators who are experts in education and ICT. Though strongly applauded by Uganda Minister for Education, only few international schools in Kampala use digital curriculum and online courses. These schools are too expensive to afford not only by refugees but even by Ugandans. EwB is going to be community based with outsourced courses & low costs of operation, hence free.

What are some of your unanswered questions about the idea?

How will this innovation be received by the local community? I wonder if they will like it and commit themselves in the program. However, since young people love computers and internet, I believe they will love it. When we use digital curriculum in very lower classes, will they have the moral of learning how to write since national examinations in Primary seven will require writing.

Tell us more about you.

Planning for Tomorrow Youth Organisation (P4T) is a community organisation registered with Uganda Government, creating a healthy and self reliant community with knowledge and skills. Team: Daniel Ameny is the P4T Programmes Director. Expert in Statistic, Environmental Health and Research. Johnam Kambasu is the P4T Finance Director, Expert in Accountancy and Research. Bienvenue Byamungu is the P4T Executive Director Aliziki Abigaba is the P4T Human Resource Barbie Etum is the Social worker

What is the primary type of emergency setting where your innovation would operate?

  • Armed conflict
  • Prolonged displacement

Emergency Setting - Elaborate

Kyangwali Refugee Settlement is the home of over 40,000 refugees from five countries of Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Burundi, Kenya and South Sudan. Some people have lived in this settlement for the past 20 years (Since 1996). A total of 20,353 are children aged between 3-17 years and 12,089 youth are aged between 18-30 years. It has very low level of education with very high school dropout and poor academic performance. Uganda as a whole is home to 1,277,467 refugees from 9 countries.

Where will your innovation be implemented?

EwB will be implemented first in Kyangwali Refugee Settlement, Hoima District, Uganda, East Africa. This idea will be expanded or replicated in other refugee settlements in Uganda such as Nakivale, Kyaka, BidiBidi, Lamwo, and Rhiono Camp among others. This is upon graduation of the first cohort of beneficiaries.

Experience in Implementation Country(ies)

  • Yes, for more than one year.

In-country Networks

Windle Trust Uganda will be our potential partners in giving technical advice in education since they have been in this area for over 20 years. P4T Nursery and Primary School is a community school which is run by P4T. This is where the digital curriculum will be launched and used. Datasoft Consultancy will provide all research and data related services. Nkumba University will guide the academic enrollment and programmes in the EwB program.

Sector Expertise

  • I've worked in a sector related to my innovation for more than a year.

Sector Expertise - Elaborate

P4T has been running a Nursery and Primary School in Kyangwali since 2015. It is only at this school that children are taught how to use computer, which has prepared them for this kind of programme. Last year, P4T carried out computer training for community members and some 15 people were trained.

Innovation Maturity

  • Early Stage Innovation: I am exploring my innovation, refining, researching, and gathering inspiration.

Organization Status

  • We are a registered non-profit, charity, NGO, or community-based organization.

Organization Location

We are registered with Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development of Hoima District, Uganda.

Website

http://planningfortomorrow.org http://facebook.com/p4tpage.

9 comments

Join the conversation:

Comment
Spam
Photo of dadang konelo231
Team

Is an innovative solution provider in the renewable energy sector that focuses its activity on solar power. https://medium.com/@toniiantoniio/rekomendasi-obat-lemah-syahwat-impotensi-karena-diabetes-terbaik-5a8bd15a99a0

link
Spam
Photo of zian rizky
Team

21. Banyak tas dari berbagai model sudah pabrik Toko online tas siap menerima pembuatn tas dgn berbagai model yang kami bisa buat di [url=https://www.jualtasmurahbbs.com/]toko tas murah[/url].

[url=https://www.jualtasmurahbbs.com/category/tas-sekolah-anak/]jual tas anak[/url] contohnya tas ransel, tas pria, tas wanita, tas kulit, tas lucu, tas koper, tas seminar, tas sekolah, tas backpack, tas bodypack, tas goodiebag, tas selempang wanita.

tas selempang pria, tas ransel, tas kipling, tas sekolah anak, tas laptop, tas gendong, tas kanvas, tas pancing, tas rajutan, tas unik, tas olahraga, tas, tas jinjing atau tas [url=https://www.jualtasmurahbbs.com/category/tote-bag/]tote bag bandung[/url].

Kami juga siap untuk menerima pembuatan tas ribuan per minggu yg biasanya untuk acara seminar atau acara pemerintahan. Untuk info selengkapnya [url=https://www.jualtasmurahbbs.com/category/cath-kidston/]baca di sini[/url].

link
Spam
Photo of Daniel Ameny
Team

When I continued looking at more online and digital opportunities, I came across the Google's Digital Skills for Africa. This is an opportunity to get the digital skills one needs to grow their business, career or just their confidence. Without this centre that Online Education without Borders (EwD) in emergency  plans to create, millions of refugees will never be able to tap from this kind of opportunity; yet the centre can be able to provide access to hundreds in up to 3 shifts daily.
See more here https://learndigital.withgoogle.com/digitalskills

link
Spam
Photo of Daniel Ameny
Team

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the United Nations specialized agency for information and communication technologies – ICTs, boasts of the contribution of ICT to speeding up the SDG and recognizes its contribution to the promotion of education in Vulnerable Communities. This is what Online Education without Borders (EwD) in emergency project will certainly achieve in the refugee population, both in rural and urban settlements.
https://tinyurl.com/ITUstdzn

link
Spam
Photo of Daniel Ameny
Team

This idea Online Education without Borders (EwB) in Emergency acknowledge the global opportunities that are available online to increase enrollment to higher education; a problem which is endemic in emergencies, as well as opportunities to make quality education accessible through digital curriculum.

link
Spam
Photo of Helen
Team

I agree with Johnam, we have to contribute as much as we can.

link
Spam
Photo of Daniel Ameny
Team

That is right. Putting pressure on the government and the refugee support agencies will only generate more and more blames for them since they can not basically give all that refugees need. Online EwB in emergency will not only ease the burden but increase the enrollment of refugees in higher education.

link
Spam
Photo of JOHNAM
Team

This is very important idea for refugee children. Most refugee settlements and camps especially in Uganda lack enough schools to provide education to the ever increasing refugee numbers. In Kyangwali Refugee Settlement there are very many children out of schools because of various reasons including insufficient schools, congestion in the existing schools and long distances from home to school.

link
Spam
Photo of Daniel Ameny
Team

This is indeed a huge challenge for refugees. With Online EwB in emergency. I expect to address this need in Kyangwali and expand this programme to other refugee camps in Northern and Western Uganda where the project can reach over 200,000 youth.

link