Palmcast Initiative

Objective

Technology in education can revolutionize the way people learn. Therefore, the Palmcast Initiative will provide digital solutions through a mixed of new and repurposed with education applications that facilitate literacy and vocational skills. 

Mission Statements

Empowering young women and girls from rural communities to become life-long learner's by:               

• Using technology to improve literacy. 
• Providing individualized skills training through the incorporation of repurposed technological tools.

Palmcast Literacy and Vocational Skills Initiative (Description)

This device will identify and improve the Reading levels of all females also provide them with skills that they can use to provide for themselves and families.

The content for the Reading program along with learning English, Cosmetology, Food Preparation & Service, Housekeeping, Cake Decorating and Early Childhood training will be preloaded on the device. This would eliminate the need for regular internet and when it  is available more information can be downloaded and stored. 

The disparity between the education and the reading levels of students, especially girls.

This disparity with girls is not prevalent in Jamaica but the recent Corona Virus has revealed that poor children, those living in the ghettos without internet access are being left behind. As a result, they aren't able to access the online classes being offered. I am sure that this is happening globally in countries with similar circumstances as Jamaica. Therefore, the lack of internet access among vunerable children during the COVID-19 pandemic has prompted the need for the Palmcast initiative aimed at providing literacy application on new and repurposed devices to cater to students learning needs.

Single mothers most times are teenagers who do not have the necessary training and skills to provide for their children. Therefore, the Palmcast Vocational Training programs accessibility on a digital device would ensure that they can learn marketable skills. 

This is a technological device with a  Reading program (Assessment Tests for Preprimer to level 6 and interventions), learning English and Vocational Training preloaded.

Reading Program: The application will comprise of stories, questions and individual analysis (pre & post). These include:

* Letter Analysis: Letter analysis section is to identify if the reader knows both capital and common letters along with their sounds.

* Sentences to Word Filter: This section guides the selection of the word list.

* Sight Words Analysis: This assesses how many sight words the reader can identify in a timely manner.

* Oral Reading Miscue Analysis, Oral System Analysis, and Oral Reading System Analysis: During the analysis, errors are recorded. If during reading the story appears too hard, then a lower story is selected.

* Comprehension Analysis: 

Based on the performance in the Comprehension section, a level is assigned.

* Intervention Analysis: All information gathered is analyzed and intervention developed. The 3 Cueing Systems and the 4 Blocks Approach are being used.

Palmcast Vocational Program: This would be achieved through a digital application that provides vocational training through video demonstrations and other differentiated strategies through the use of repurposed devices without the use of internet access.

Palmcast Vocational Program

This program is geared towards all females in remote areas and poor families wanting to improve their standard of living through education.  Ultimately, these acquired skills can lead to the development of cottage industries in these rural communities and contribute to the countries economic development.

Palmcast Reading Program

Targeted Population: Students reading at the pre-primer to level 6.

(The Reading tests are completed and available only in document form. I
am still working on the Intervention lessons.  All that would be
required is the technological conversion)

The Palmcast application can be vital in transforming the way educators diverse their strategies in improving literacy among children. Therefore, a qualitative Research would be essential in gathering crucial data from teachers, students and parents that would inform the further development of the Palmcast Reading Program in creating a culture of literacy in the Jamaican society.

To reduce the disparity between girls education and boys, the devices would be provided to females who need it. This would ensure that they have access to the information for formal classes and while at home. The Vocational subjects that will be preloaded are traditional girl related ones. They may select others if they have access to internet.

It is ideal for poor children and persons living in remote areas.

The Reading program identifies the Reading level using sight word, oral reading and comprehension tests. Then tailored activities will be provided to improve the Reading level or fix reading issues.

This is an innovation because there is no other devices available with these tests, intervention and Vocational courses. It will make learning easier and provide more accessible technology in remote areas for poor females. 

The Palmcast Initiative will allow for the differentiation of reading strategies that allow for students to improve their reading levels through the utilization of technology in education and mobile applications. This solution aims to promote digital citizenship especially among students in rural communities. 

The Palmcast Vocational Skills Program is aimed at giving females in rural communities the opportunity to acquire skills that contributes to life long learning. The Palmcast Vocational Initiative promotes the use of new and repurposed devices that provide users with the opportunity to adopt individualized learning strategies within their own time to develop key skills.

Machine learning and AI will be an integral part of this project especially the Reading Program. Therefore, the Palmcast Initiative will rely on the acquisition of new and repurposed smart devices such as tablets and smart phones. Additionally, a mobile applications will be developed for the reading and vocational program. These mobile applications will be uploaded to these devices.

Private-Public partnership will be essential in providing the well needed devices that are required to support the implementation of this program as a pivot in rural communities in Spanish Town. 

This technology can work because literacy is an issue all over the world; and there have been programs that have online applications to teach or assess Reading but not that will utilize machine learning yet.

The use of tablets and smartphones are prevalent in the society but not all persons can readily afford to purchase these devices. Therefore, this project provides the females from rural communities with the opportunity to access the use of these devices and applications for life-long learning.

This solution especially the Reading program will greatly impact the issue of illiteracy because it won't require a physical person administering the tests and will learn the different categories of errors. In addition, the interventions will be tailored based on individual errors.

The online interactive version is not available yet and that's what the funding is needed for. This version will have the capacity to serve more than a million persons worldwide.

My goal is to have these courses especially the Reading program loaded on a handheld device and available to persons in need.

• Financial Barriers: Lack the required funds or the 
• Technical Barriers: Lack the technical skills necessary in the development of mobile applications to add the courses to the devices.

The funding provided from this competition will be used to acquire these devices for the implementation of the pilot project. In addition, it will support the development of the mobile applications needed to support the Palmcast Reading and Vocational Skills Initiative. Ultimately, the success of the proposal in the competition will greatly aid in bringing the concept into a partnership that will transform learning in rural communities.

Not apart of an organisation.

Two

We are both educators.

We have not partnered with any organisation but an online school has expressed interest in having the Reading  program as a part of their programs.

The initial funding for the interactive online version will hopefully come from this competition to do the set. Afterwards, funding can be generated through subscriptions or schools in remote areas or agencies purchasing the rights to use it.

We are applying because we recognise that this venture needs established partners to ensure that it is beneficial to a variety of countries. The funding provided by Solve can chart a roadmap for the Palmcast Initiative to implement the project aimed at improving literacy and development of life long skills.

Presently, all that is in place is content for what should be placed on the platform/ online version. Also, no organisational structure has been established. Hence, through a Private-Public sector partnership, an organizational structure and strategic plan will be developed guide the implementation of the initiative.

MIT Faculty, Solve Members and A group or person involved in machine learning and online platform design.

If the solution is accepted, it could be preload onto devices that persons in remote or refugee camps can use to further their skills.

This solution is ideal and is a targeting the improvement of Literary/ education for girls and women.

This solution is ideal and is a targeting the improvement of Literary/ education for girls and women.The skill based subjects are also specifically designed for girls and women.

This solution has a Reading program component; that assesses Reading levels and provide tailored intervention that are geared at improving literacy.

It is our home to ensure that AI and Machine learning is used, especially in the Reading because it will require readers to use their voice when doing oral Reading. Errors will be recorded using at least 3 systems: syntax, semantics and phonetic and we won't be able to input all the possible errors. This would mean that a platform that can adapt and added errors as they are done is necessary.