KHMER LEARN:Innovative ICT for improved learning in Cambodia

Khmer LEARN is an interactive education platform that brings innovative learning and teaching applications to marginalized and resource-scarce communities. It is a needs-based solution born and tested in Cambodia to help young people build essential reading, language and learning skills necessary for lifelong learning and a solid foundation for success.

Khmer LEARN is an innovative and tested solution to overcoming access barriers to quality education in Cambodia, giving young people from all segments of society an equal opportunity to learn and reach their full potential. It does not discriminate and caters to the poor, the disabled and the marginalized, offering quality reading and learning content to those traditionally excluded from the education system. The mobile ICT platform is easy-to-use, and a valuable resource in communities where schools are under-staffed, under-resourced and poorly capacitated: it aids in teacher capacity development, strengthening of the national curriculum, and expanded learning opportunities for children.        

Equal access to quality education remains one of Cambodia’s most pressing barriers to inclusive growth. Khmer LEARN is based on the widely-accepted research of ADB, UNESCO and others that recognizes the effectiveness of ICT in reaching disadvantaged groups, and facilitating an essential lifeline for learning opportunities. It also builds on pilot stage findings that showed increased use of libraries and uptake of reading practices among students in participating schools. By expanding quality learning content and promoting interest and skills in reading through ICT, Khmer LEARN is setting the stage for improved literacy and better life opportunities for young Cambodians.

Khmer LEARN is comprised of five interactive and integrated applications designed to transform quality teaching and learning for students, teachers and the wider Khmer community. By 2019, 500,000  Khmer learners will have expanded access to child-centered resources to promote reading and accelerated learning; undertrained teachers will enhance their capacity to deliver high quality, relevant lessons for students through participation in e-trainings and field-level coaching; a young generation of content writers will be supported to hone their skills and contribute digital content with mentoring and technical support; and importantly, the platform will be sustained through a self-financing, market-based social enterprise model.

Track number of downloads in apps and analyze user activity data, Conduct Reading Assessment; Track and analyze individual student performance - 500,000 people download and actively use Khmer LEARN platform including 44,000 students aged 5-16 years in target communities improve learning performance and skills

Track number of content downloads; Track, analyze on teacher engagement and performance, School Digital Monitoring, and training pre and post tests - 6,000 teachers utilize Khmer LEARN to improve their teaching capacity, including 1,000 in target schools who are able to improve quality of teaching through child-friendly teaching methods and complementary materials

Track number of young authors trained, Track number of produced and uploaded contents, Analyze user activity and purchase data, and track volume and value of profits from the sale - At least 200 new contents created in Khmer LEARN by young local authors trained by the project, who are supported to start generating income from content sales on the app

Khmer LEARN prioritizes the inter-related education needs of Cambodian children, parents, teachers, schools and the wider community to promote a culture of learning through high quality content that is free of charge. Unlike other ICT for education solutions, Khmer LEARN offers a user-led model informed by the needs and contributions of local people, including a unique sustainability mechanism that engages local graduates and young entrepreneurs in creating and contributing contents to the platform. The solution combines digital applications, digital library and field-based activities, and is one of the largest e-learning platforms in Cambodia with more than 220,000 installations.  

Khmer LEARN prioritizes the inter-related education needs of Cambodian children, parents, teachers, schools and the wider community to promote a culture of learning through high quality content that is free of charge. Unlike other ICT for education solutions, Khmer LEARN offers a user-led model informed by the needs and contributions of local people, including a unique sustainability mechanism that engages young entrepreneurs in creating and contributing contents to the platform. The solution combines digital applications, digital library and field-based activities, and is one of the largest e-learning platforms in Cambodia with more than 220,000 installations in three years.  

Our solutions is physically available at schools and online. Content can be immediately downloaded from Store; once downloaded, content can be accessed and utilized offline anywhere at anytime. Learners could access to digital library at schools, mobile library at villages and smartphones. Mobile phone access is nearly universal for young people in Cambodia and internet connectivity has been confirmed in target schools and communities to facilitate ease of use. Over the next three years, internet use in Cambodia is expected to increase to 100% among urban and 80% among rural dwellers (MPTC 2017), further positioning the platform for wider scale-up.

Financial sustainability is a core feature of Khmer LEARN, and integrated into all aspects of project design and implementation. School-based activities are closely coordinated with government plans and policies, including budget allocation priorities for school infrastructure and teacher trainings. Technical collaborators include NGOs with existing education programs to ensure complementarity and maximize use of shared resources. To the extent possible, technology inputs were secured through vendor partnerships and diversified funding support from corporate, foundation and institutional donors. Lastly, the solution has a built-in feature to generate income after maturation, sustained by AEA’s market-based social enterprise financing model.

While the solution has been tested and is well-positioned for success, delayed internet coverage and slow connectivity in rural and remote parts of the country continue to pose operational and technical challenges for the project. Relatedly, many areas with limited technology access lack familiarity with smartphones and tablets, resulting in potential misuse and/or mismanagement. The upcoming, highly anticipated national election in 2018 has the potential to pose restrictive political challenges in target communities, and existing legislation on e-commerce has yet to be enacted, leaving consumers without protective measures that can impact the success of the platform’s sustainability feature.

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Khmer LEARN was conceived as a dynamic, needs-based and demand-driven solution to addressing quality of education in Cambodia, relying on the active collaboration of many stakeholders with expertise in education, ICT and related industries to execute concept to reality. To remain relevant and responsive to the changing needs of local communities, AEA is eager to expand its network of collaborators to introduce new features and innovations, while continuing to update and improve existing functions to maximize the platform’s impact. AEA is especially interested in engaging with regional and global experts to assist in optimizing the social enterprise model.

Funding partners: The Atlassian Foundation, AOP, THF, EAC/EAA, DI/USIAD

Technology partners: Biz Solution, Cam Ant, DMI, and Khmer Dev, Open Institute

Content partners are Comic Art Publishing House, Wisdom Book Publishing House, Reading Book, Room to Read, VVOB, New World Studio, and ECRC, The Asia Foundation

Potentially, Room to Read, World Education, Asia Foundation, Korea Software’s HRD Center