By Marita Adhiambo, Digital Program Officer
COVID-19 brought unprecedented shifts in the Education sector, and it never ceases to amaze how the EdTech space grew due to the pandemic. Amid chaos and uncertainty, innovations were created, new solutions emerged, and collaborations were made to accelerate education. Dignitas embarked on the EdTech journey three years ago, driven by the urgency of the pandemic to keep upskilling our teachers. As a result, this year, we were proud to launch our new teacher professional development learning app, LeadNow. Therefore, the EdTech Summit allowed us to connect with like-minded individuals, organizations, and the Ministry of Education to exchange ideas and share in the remarkable strides in education technology.
The EdTech Summit is a convening that began in 2022 to bring different stakeholders in the education and EdTech space together. The two-day summit allowed us to discuss ways to support teaching and learning through technology, and we had a chance to also discuss Edtech collective goals .
The Summit allowed us to reflect on how Kenya has witnessed a growing Edtech ecosystem in recent years, with the government leading this growth through the Digital Literacy Program. According to the report of the presidential working party on education reform, 82% of public primary schools are connected to the national power grid, while 14% are through solar energy, resulting from the Digital Learning Program(DLP). Under the DLP umbrella, the government has also distributed tablets to 21 637 public primary schools in Kenya. Several startups and organizations have also stepped in to accelerate digital literacy in schools, e.g., training teachers in digital literacy, distributing tablets/smartphones to schools, and designing programs that target upskilling learners’ digital literacy skills. Kenya also has one of the highest internet and mobile penetration on the continent, facilitating the adoption of digital learning tools and platforms.
Some of the advantages of the expansion of Edtech are that it has expanded access to education, especially in remote and underserved areas in Kenya; students and teachers can access educational content and resources online. This has also led to teacher development by improving teaching methods and content delivery.
To ensure we are all moving in the right direction while keeping the learner in mind through all our innovations in EdTech, the summit discussed ways in which we as the Edtech community can collaborate including sharing of data, forming meaningful partnerships and advocating for digital literacy within our spaces. EdTech East Africa came up with a how-to Guide on how to work with government, media, technology partners, academia and local research partners. We got to discuss the collective goals that were developed during the EdTech 2022 Summit by looking at the evidence around the goals, what are the enablers of the goals, and the barriers to these goals being achieved. We got to have open discussions around the current trends in EdTech, such as AI in Education, and look at the past (during COVID-19,) when EdTech enabled teaching and learning during a time that counted as an emergency and if/how Edtech can be used during emergencies.
Dignitas, through our LeadNow app, ensures that our teachers are equipped to support the next generation by strengthening their capacity as those closest to learners by building upon their leadership, classroom management, and digital literacy skills.
Looking ahead, the education community envisions a future where no one is left behind, and the underserved communities are reached to ensure the education community is continuously focusing its efforts to unlock the potential of technology. One of the things that we ought not to forget is the importance of teacher capacity building in this evolving landscape. We can all agree that technology can never replace the human touch in the classroom.
“Technology will not replace teachers, but technology will be able to supplement the teachers.”
Dr. Sam Marigat – County Director of Education, Kisumu County
In conclusion, the Edtech Summit encouraged thoughtful consideration of how and when technology should support the learning process effectively. The COVID-19 pandemic brought about a seismic shift in the education sector, catalyzing the growth of EdTech innovations. Edtech impact is evident, with the Kenya Digital Learning Program led by the government playing a pivotal role in shaping the future of Edtech in Kenya. The summit underlines the importance of keeping the Learner at the forefront of all our innovations while ensuring our key goal is accelerating education through technology.
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