Since the COVID-19 pandemic forced hundreds of schools to close their doors - some permanently - the race to come up with alternative education solutions has been on. From bright young start-ups to forward-thinking non-profits, a variety of EdTech have emerged. Yet, many have faced the same pitfalls as they attempt to bring their innovation to scale.
“When War Child began developing Can’t Wait to Learn we led with some assumptions”, says Judith Flick, Director of the tablet-based e-learning innovation, Can’t Wait to Learn. “These assumptions influenced the early iterations.”
One assumption was that external agencies would adopt Can’t Wait to Learn after proof of concept creating a ripple effect through the organization and country and reducing costs at scale. War Child also assumed that ministries of education would be eager to adopt and roll out the considering it would be so closely aligned to their curriculum.
With and through their network of partners War Child began to roll out in conflict-affected countries including Uganda, Jordan, Lebanon and South Sudan.
Based on a ‘game world’ co-created with children, Can’t Wait to Learn quickly turned heads. And not only for the children avidly following the creative reading and maths games, but also for teachers who - understaffed and overburdened - could suddenly transmit their words of wisdom through a screen on a tablet device.
Overcoming a multitude of challenges from damaged infrastructure to nationwide lockdowns and connectivity issues, by the end of 2021 Can’t Wait to Learn had succeeded in reaching some 24,591 children with quality education.
With and through their network of partners War Child began to roll out in conflict-affected countries including Uganda, Jordan, Lebanon and South Sudan.
Based on a ‘game world’ co-created with children, Can’t Wait to Learn quickly turned heads. And not only for the children avidly following the creative reading and maths games, but also for teachers who - understaffed and overburdened - could suddenly transmit their words of wisdom through a screen on a tablet device.
Overcoming a multitude of challenges from damaged infrastructure to nationwide lockdowns and connectivity issues, by the end of 2021 Can’t Wait to Learn had succeeded in reaching some 24,591 children with quality education.
The funds required to continue implementation stalled, and the partners, although willing, could not secure substantial funding for scaling. Therefore, new game development came to a halt. Meanwhile, the pandemic revealed the need for radical adjustments to the programe.
“While we were quick to respond and meet the demand for digital education, we stumbled through software limitations and a slow supply chain”, says Merel Sas, Design Lead for Can’t Wait to Learn. “The hard truth - we weren’t quite ready for scale-up after all.”
Onwards and upwards
Through talks with the sector, War Child quickly discovered that this blind spot was extremely common. Yes, War Child needed to pause and evaluate and yes, the organization needed to fundamentally reassess their strategy - involving a number of difficult ‘trade-offs’ - but ultimately this was just another phase in their journey.
“Up to phase two (scaling up) the focus is on making the perfect intervention and proving that it works”, says Judith. “From stage three (scaling out) success is measured against what the ultimate user wants - it requires a marketing approach.”
And who is the ultimate user? The communities, the implementing partners or the children? Judith: “Of course the children are the most important, but all three need to be taken into consideration during market research. Continuous communication and feedback is the only way to ensure quality, build relationships and create the right product.”
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