Fundación Televisa A.C.

Fundación Televisa promotes the development of Mexico by creating opportunities for as many people as possible and disseminating our country's cultural heritage. We aim to have a positive and extensive impact on human development by collaborating with public, private, and civil society entities to make a significant contribution to the community. We leverage our main asset, media dissemination, to serve the people.
Our efforts are focused on promoting education, values and healthy coexistence, health, environmental care, culture, and art. Our programs support early childhood, children, and youth in unlocking their full potential and talent. Additionally, we provide technological platforms to empower and train individuals.
Furthermore, we promote and support sustainable social entrepreneurship programs. We extend our actions beyond borders to showcase Mexican culture and art through photography and audiovisual images.
Over the course of 20 years, our programs have brought forth 10,057,859 stories with happy endings. Fundación Televisa works in alignment with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, fighting against inequality and hunger. We promote quality education, health, and gender equality to foster a more just and peaceful society.
Cuantrix is a program by Fundación Televisa that aims to create equal opportunities through computer science, enabling one million of children and young people in Mexico to learn coding each year. We develop our own content and adapt third-party materials to create comprehensive manuals consisting of lessons that teachers can implement in their classrooms. Our content covers grades one to secondary school, with each program comprising 25-32 lessons.
We provide teacher training either in person or through our platform, equipping them with the fundamentals of computer science and coding. Additionally, we guide them on using different platforms and employing our teaching methodology using the manuals. Once teachers begin implementing the lessons in their classrooms, we offer support through facilitators who visit their schools. These facilitators provide guidance, address any concerns, motivate teachers to continue with the program, and gather implementation-related information.

Ilse Alvarez has 8 years of experience in Technological Education, she has participated in the design of educational content, the organization of national Robotics events, the coordination and training of volunteers and teachers in STEAM, Computer Science, Coding, and Robotics. She has also been involved in monitoring educational communities.
Ilse has mentored comprehensive robotics and STEAM camps for both boys. She has developed creative challenges and managed logistics for contests and programs like FIRST LEGO League JR. In addition, she has created and developed mechatronic projects to teach electronics to children. Additionally, she completed a stay at the Mexican Space Agency (AEM) where she developed the CanSat Base AEM-1 prototype, an educational device.
Currently, as part of the Cuantrix program, Ilse Alvarez is responsible for coordinating program operations and managing educational content development. She has been with the program for five years creating training materials and implementing training for trainers. In addition, she coordinates the logistics of replicating the training with teachers and monitors support and progress in different states. She also shares the operational progress of the program with our partners.

One of the program's priorities is to assess whether the current content (lessons) is adequate or excessive for student learning, as well as whether the syllabus aligns with the actual needs of teachers for implementation in their classrooms. Therefore, our participation in the LEAP Project is of utmost importance.  
   
The team members will allocate the necessary labor time for the project, as it is a top priority. Ilse Alvarez, who coordinates the program, possesses the operational and content development experience required to make an effective contribution to the project. Karen Sánchez, a content analyst on our team, will provide the necessary and detailed materials and manuals. Additionally, Billy Solorzano, as the operational lead, will provide and coordinate the required information.

Cuantrix aims to improve equal opportunities by harnessing the power of coding and computing to revolutionize education in Mexico.

In Mexico, students lack 21st-century literacy, which means they are not developing the necessary skills demanded by today's society and future jobs. This lack of access to 21st-century skills poses a significant challenge that requires attention. We firmly believe that learning computer science and coding should be accessible and achievable for all children in Mexico.  
To address this problem, we recognize the importance of working in schools and with teachers. The solution lies in implementing a systematic approach that involves educational institutions and educators. By collaborating with schools and teachers, we can drive substantial changes in the education system, providing students with the tools and opportunities they need to acquire 21st-century skills. By training teachers in computer science and coding, we can ensure they are prepared to teach these skills effectively and equitably.  
Our mission is to work together with schools and teachers to bridge the gap in 21st-century literacy, ensuring that every child in Mexico has access to an education that prepares them to face the challenges and opportunities of the ever-evolving digital world.

We are committed to promoting the learning of computing and coding among children ages 6 to 18 in public schools. Our approach involves providing free content that is taught by trained teachers in the classroom. These teachers have received comprehensive training in teaching and learning methodologies, which has enabled them to deliver the program effectively. Throughout the school year, we offer ongoing support, guidance, and encouragement to teachers as they implement the program.

During the last 7 school years, we have successfully trained 30,000 teachers in Mexico City (CDMX) and other states of the country. These teachers have become invaluable replicators of knowledge, bringing their experience to their own classrooms. We believe we have the potential for further expansion. By collecting relevant information and conducting exhaustive studies on the relevance of the educational content and the needs that the teacher requires for the implementation of the program, we can explore opportunities to expand the scope. 

We have carried out Formative Research through user interviews, implementation studies specifically aimed at teachers who implement with their students in the classroom. We have done this with the support of two institutions, the University of Alcala and the BID.

The research carried out by the University of Alcalá on the CUANTRIX program has yielded important results: 
The program has had a strong impact and interest within the educational community, aligns well with the curriculum, and has been successfully implemented in schools. However, there are areas for improvement, such as adjusting training schedules and providing specialized support to students. 
The program has been well received by teachers and has been implemented, they have requested materials adapted to their specific contexts and emphasized the need for technological and organizational resources in schools. 
To address these areas for improvement, the following was carried out: 

• The improvement and adaptation of contents in collaboration with groups of teachers. 
• Incentives were introduced, including the donation of equipment to 200 schools, to encourage the implementation of the program's contents in the classrooms. 
• Training schedules were adjusted based on the needs and coverage requested by the educational authorities. 

We also conducted an evaluation of the Inter-American Development Bank (BID), which indicates that support through follow-up visits to the teacher has a positive impact on the adoption of the program and the number of lessons taught. 

We believe that more information is required to find findings that contribute to decision making to improve monitoring and scalability. 

Throughout seven school cycles of implementation, we have observed that students who receive computer science and coding education in their classrooms develop skills and interests such as problem-solving, critical thinking, frustration management, creativity, and competence in the use of learning tools and devices.

As an organization, we aim to possess certain study characteristics. Our goal is to assess whether our syllabus has the optimal balance of academic content, the right number of lessons, and an adequate amount of exercises and activities to facilitate the acquisition of the expected knowledge and skills. 

We are also interested in evaluating whether our syllabus aligns with the specific needs and preferences of teachers. In particular, we aim to identify areas that may require modifications or adaptations to ensure that our syllabus is an appealing option for teachers to implement additional lessons with their students. 
For instance, in the 22-23 school year, we followed up with 2,239 teachers, of whom 1,963 have implemented lessons with their students. They have a disaggregated participation as follows: 

• Teachers implementing 1 to 4 lessons: 1,252 
• Teachers implementing 5 to 9 lessons: 582 
• Teachers implementing more than 10 lessons: 129 

This indicates that the teachers are not teaching more than 10 lessons of the syllabus.

By participating in the LEAP project, we can align our efforts with the demands and aspirations of teachers, ensuring that our program is responsive and valuable. Additionally, we can adapt the syllabus to make it relevant for teaching purposes. 

1. Does our syllabus possess the optimal balance of academic content, the appropriate quantity of lessons, and a sufficient number of exercises and activities to facilitate the acquisition of expected knowledge and skills?  

2. Does our syllabus align with the specific needs and preferences of teachers, and what areas, if any, require modification or adaptation to ensure our syllabus is an attractive choice for teachers to implement or increase engagement?

Research Recommendations: Obtain research recommendations based on data collected throughout the project. These recommendations will offer guidance and strategies to improve the evidence base for the solution. The primary focus will be on understanding whether our syllabus has the optimal balance of academic content, the right number of lessons, and a sufficient number of exercises and activities to facilitate the acquisition of the knowledge and skills expected of students. 

Teacher Engagement Analysis: A significant output will be a document that examines whether our syllabus aligns with the specific needs and preferences of teachers. In particular, we seek to identify areas that may require modification or adaptation to ensure that our syllabus is an attractive option for teachers to implement. 

After the conclusion of the 12-week LEAP project, Cuatrix plans to use the results obtained to improve the implementation model and the educational content offered to students and teachers. 

As for the students, it is expected that the results obtained will help to identify the improvements that need to be made in the educational resources that favor their learning.

In relation to teachers, it is expected that the results obtained will help identify the factors that influence their decision to teach the Cuatrix program and give us guidance to implement solutions that motivate them to teach more lessons with their students. 

Ultimately, Cuatrix's ultimate goal is to use the results obtained from the 12-week LEAP project to improve the quality of coding and computer science education offered to students and teachers, thus promoting the development of valuable skills and competencies for your future success. 

When collecting information about the academic content, necessary adjustments will be made in the educational materials to ensure a balanced approach and facilitate the acquisition of the expected knowledge and skills. 

The results of the study will be used to develop strategies and implement adjustments to encourage more teachers to adopt the program and increase their participation in lesson delivery. 

Once these findings and areas for improvement have been addressed, we will continue to sensitize the authorities and educational figures in the country. Our goal is to incorporate the program into the academic syllabus and provide greater access to computer science and coding for the children.