I have been extremely interested in the BridgeIT program since learning about it last year in Nepal, and trying to get funding to start a pilot program in one of the Magic Yeti's library locations in Khumjung, Nepal. The funding ultimately did not come through, but my interest in the program remained. I had the opportunity to meet with Mr. Joseph Morrorgoro, who is spearheading the effort, at his organization's office in Dar Es Salaam, to speak about the program. First, a quick video about BridgeIT and some background information taken from the organization's website:
From the BridgeIT information profile:
“In September 2007, the International Youth Foundation and the Tanzania Ministry of Education and Vocational Training launched BridgeIT Tanzania, in close partnership with the Forum for African Women Educationalists, Nokia, Nokia Siemens Networks, and the Pearson Foundation. BridgeIT's goal is to significantly increase the quality of teacher instruction and achievement among primary school boys and girls in math, science, and life skills through the innovative use of cell phones and digital technology. The BridgeIT project in Tanzania is a replication of a successful project in the Phillipines known as text2teach,. Locally, BridgeIT Tanzania is known as Elimu kwa Teknolija, or ET, which means “Education Through Technology.” This two year program is supported through a grant from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
How it works:
Teachers order video content through their cellular phone, which is downloaded directly to the classroom, where students and teachers view the videos. The project allows remote schools and communities to access a vast range of educational video content to enhance the learning content that children receive through textbooks and classroom resources.”
Can you please give me a quick background of the program, the needs you are trying to meet, and the program's inception, to begin with?
BridgeIT is a program which uses mobile phone technology to support teachers and students in math and science. What we do is two parts-the first part is the content production of the education videos, which are produced in line with the Tanzania national curriculum. After they are produced, they need to be delivered to the teachers, which is where the technology is used. There is a main server where the videos are uploaded, and then the teachers can access the videos through using the Nokia N95 phone. When the videos are downloaded onto the phone, it is then connected by AV cable to the screen in the classroom. The teacher will use the science and math videos as a teaching aid. They are video clips. They do not cover the whole lesson (45 minutes) but are only 3-7 minutes depending on the topic and the content. The teacher will obviously need to teach using other materials as well as the screens. At a particular stage in the lesson, the teacher can access the videos. There are three kinds of videos-adopted videos from the US, which were translated from English to Swahili-these were produced by the Pearson Foundation; there are also locally made videos, which are both real time and animation-these are produced on site here in the office for the students. This is an NGO under the supervision of the Ministry of Education.
How was the need for a program like this initially discovered? What is the need you are trying to fill?
Professor Penina (a professor at the University of Dar Es Salaam) is the who is the one who came up with the idea, who presented the idea and started the proposal. She was trying to fill the need of better teacher training in the rural areas, and the lack of quality resources, especially in the rural areas of the country which have been historically under served.
Who are some of the key partners working on the project with you here in Tanzania?
USAID is the main funder, and has provided money for video production, teacher training, teacher guides, materials, and teacher manuals.
Vodacom: has provided free mobile networks to the teachers-the downloads are done free of charge on their mobile network
Nokia: they provide the N95 phones and the software, which is the Nokia Education Delivery Software, developed by Nokia to run the phone and the educational software
Ministry of Education: apart from being the key stakeholder in the project, their staff are fully engaged in the video production process both from the ministry and the TIE-Institute of Education workers who are also helping with the video production.
Specialized people in curriculum development guide the project-they are from within the Ministry of Education.
Where is the central server for the program located?
The server is located at Vodacom's headquarters here in Dar, due to the need for technical training and supervising. The plan is to shift it from here to the Ministry of Education in the near future, to provide more ownership over the program, once more Ministry of Education technical workers can be trained in the maintenance of the machinery.
How big has the roll-out been to this point? How is the program distributed throughout the country?
There are currently about 150 schools in 17 districts, covering about 1% of all public primary schools. The program has been spread evenly around the country, from the east side, the south, central, and also the north side, in both urban and rural areas, but most of the schools in the rural areas, because the problem of quality education is more severe in the rural areas.
How do you deal with the unstable power situation in the rural areas?
Solar power and generators are being used. A lot of the schools are on the grid, however. Power supply is not provided by BridgeIT to run the local programs. The community needs to be engaged to support the program, and if power is lacking, they are responsible for finding a way to overcome this gap before the program can be introduced. Some of the schools installed solar, and some communities came together and bought small generators for the school.
You mentioned Math and Science, which I have heard a lot about being critically lacking areas, especially for females in the country. What about the other subjects, such as English or Social Studies, that could also benefit from the technology?
There is a desire to grow the program. Teachers and students have been asking as to why the videos are not in all the areas. Everything must start with a point, but the plan is to extend the program to other subjects and other schools. The focus now is on the primary level. There is also new program called TZ21st. BridgeIT is in 5 and 6 grades; this other program is working with grades 1-4, however, the model is different in TZ21st they are using laptops and projectors instead.
How are the videos integrated into the lesson plans and the curriculum of the local teachers?
The curriculum is designed with certain “breaks” in the lessons where the videos are integrated into the lesson plans.
How are the local teachers trained in using the technology?
Teachers, in the pre-production stage, have to come down and first come up with a list of the topics as to what they think the videos should be produced. The topics are what are lacking in the current schools. The teachers look and propose what needs to be covered in the topics, as the experts. They know how the topics should be taught. The teachers present their ideas and suggest what materials are needed in the lesson plans to give a clear understanding. The ideas are given to the video producers and math them to the production. The N95 has options such as forwarding, pausing, rewinding, so the videos can be manipulated and described in the class.
What is the biggest risk or challenge in deploying the technology? The biggest benefit?
The biggest challenge is the cost of the program. The video production cost is very high. Also, another challenge is the skills of video production that are lacking in the country. We need professionals in this area, and there are not many in the country. Also, technology is always changing, it is dynamic by nature; for instance, we have been using the N95, which is no longer in the market, which means that now we will need to change the phones, which creates a big cost problem. There have also been a few cases where some of the materials have been stolen, but the school management committee, including the head teacher and the students all have a part to play in making sure this does not become a problem. During the introduction of the program, we had to work hard to manage the expectations. We had to educate the communities, the school management, that the equipment is there to support the kids for their learning, to create a sense of ownership over the materials for the community. All stakeholders, from the national level to the local level, has been engaged in the project, which has helped tremendously in the implementation of the project.
Where do you see the project in 5/10 years?
There has been an action plan introduced at the school and district level. At the latter, the district leader has the duty to expand the project to new schools. The main office has asked them to come up with a written plan under which they are responsible. The district education officers are thus challenged with the expansion at the district level. At the local level, there was a discussion with the school committees who have to come up with action plans to show how the project would be sustainable, where they would take care of the equipment, and where possible, contribute to the program in the school. The community should expand the program from one to two or three classrooms.
Do you think the program could be replicated in other countries in the region?
Absolutely. Yes, Nigeria and Kenya have also started the program. People from Nigeria were here, and they were observing the project and were very excited with the project. Also, Kenya has been planning the project. During the E-Africa learning conference, BridgeIT was presented, and there was a lot of buzz in the program.
