MIT Solve

Solution Overview

Solution Name

Inspirelearn Mobile Platform

One-line solution summary.

The Inspirelearn mobile platform is a simple, portable, offline and affordable tool which contains educational content and an extensible audio library in both english and local language (Chichewa).

Elevator pitch

What is your solution?

The InspireLearn mobile platform is a simple, offline and affordable tool which contains educational content and an extensible audio library in both English and local language (Chichewa). The platform has been made accessible on low end feature phones that can be bought at less than $30.00. The InspireLearn platform is a great tool for youth in remote and underprivileged communities with challenges in accessing schools and learning materials especially during crises such as the time of a pandemic where youth in marginalized communities risk being left behind as others can afford to implement and sustain an effective learning alternative. Moreover, for those with little to no access to electricity, these phones can be charged via solar power on a solar kit.

What specific problem are you trying to solve?

Access to education and its associated resources has always been a major challenge in Malawi. For example, 24 students can share one text book at any one time. The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology of Malawi primarily attributes this to insufficient teaching and learning infrastructure, qualified teachers and high costs of education for students. These implications are taking Malawi further away from reaching SDG 4 which stipulates inclusive, equitable quality education. In 2020 when the COVID 19 pandemic hit, all schools were closed leaving well over 300, 000 students with no effective alternatives of distance learning nationwide. ELearning was for the privileged few due to the digital divide which ranks Malawi on 167th place among 176 countries in the global ICT development Index. Learners in marginalised communities and Community Day Secondary Schools (CDSSs) were not prepared for online learning.

Who does your solution serve? In what ways will the solution impact their lives?

We will be serving adolescent boys and girls in secondary schools within rural and hard reach communities, most of whom have little to no access to educational content as well as electronic devices. We will also target students with physical and learning disabilities so that this platform can also be used to their advantage for learning thus achieving inclusivity.

What steps have you taken to understand the needs of the population you want to serve?

We have done research with regards to the current situation when it comes to accessing educational materials for our target population. Furthermore, the end users (target population) have been involved in the testing and designing by going to a selected school with the students and allowing them to test the educational platform. We have carried out two small scale tests of this kind so far with them.

Which aspects of the Challenge does your solution most closely address?

Improving learning opportunities and outcomes for learners across their lifetimes, from early childhood on (Learning)

Our solution's stage of development:

Prototype: A venture or organization building and testing its product, service, or business model

Explain why you selected this stage of development for your solution—in other words, what have you accomplished to date?

We chose the prototype stage because at the moment we are in the organising stages for testing the prototype at a selected school with a group of students who are the sample for the end users. We are in talks with the head teacher at Magwero Community Day Secondary School in Lilongwe, Malawi and identifying suitable and willing students to run the testing phase with. The students will be part of assessing the usability of the platform which will inform further development on our end.

Where our solution team is headquartered or located:

Lilongwe, Malawi

Team Lead:

Mr. Sam Masikini