KNoDE

Due to outdated traditional education systems, a gap exists between what is being taught and what is needed to become proficient in today’s world. This gap begins in the formative years when young minds begin questioning and challenging their learning. 

Our focus is to redefine education from a restrictive and constrained, out-dated system to one of abundance, choice, and driven by purpose. This is achieved through our platform by integrating artificial intelligence and machine learning to connect students with content and courses from various education providers and lead them throughout their learning journeys. 

We aim to democratize the world's education by removing barriers and reliance on physical classrooms and restrictions of traditional structured learning models. We plan to empower 1 million learners by 2025 to build and map their learning journey through globally accessible content that is readily available in a meaningful and manageable way.

According to a recent report by Unicef (2020) there are currently 40 million children worldwide that have been affected by missed opportunities for education due to COVID-19. Many industries are navigating to repair the loss to education systems affected by COVID-19; there also appears to be an increased digital divide between countries already in a state of despair before the pandemic. Most notably, there has been an increase in school closures which will likely remain. The traditional "brick and mortar" system of education requires a new approach.

The purpose of the KNoDE platform is to ensure that learning is not restricted to the physical classroom. Learning happens everywhere. We live in an abundance of information and access to learning opportunities but parents, students, and even teachers are confused on how to curate and collect content that is engaging and provides growth opportunities. The platform connects curious minds to learning opportunities through a curated search, tracks learning experiences, maps out potential learning paths, and provides an engaging learning approach.

KNoDE is a "connectivist learning platform" that helps individual learners identify and connect with learning content, communities, and programs worldwide. KNoDE helps users create their own learning pathway by helping them bridge their personal purpose, preferences, goals, and aspirations with the appropriate and relevant learning opportunities. Individuals create their profiles on the platform by answering a few short questions to determine their passions and interests. Individuals are provided with a list of recommended courses based on preferences through machine learning and artificial intelligence. The platform will provide suggested learning maps and paths to support learners in accomplishing their learning goals. KNoDE will keep track of courses completed and skills acquired as well as allow individuals to track their own learning via a “Learning Wallet.”

The population that KNoDE will serve are children 7 to 18 years of age and their parents and/or support network such as teachers, career counsellors, etc. However, the platform can be easily adopted by all individuals older than 18 as well. The Cognitive Development that takes place during the ages of 7-18 (concrete and formal operational thought, based on Piaget's (1970) stages of development) highlights that problem-solving and thinking abilities progress significantly at this time as children become more logical and methodical in their thinking, while further developing their ability to think abstractly and synthesize new and older learning, continually building upon their knowledge. In conjunction with this is a child's Social and Emotional Development that, according to Erickson's (1950 & 1968) stages of development, focus on competency and identity during these ages. We believe that in light of the critical development taking place during this time, these young minds begin to critically and importantly question why they are learning what they learn and how it applies to their world. We believe that KNoDE will provide opportunities for curious minds to learn at the pace they want to in any area of interest. The platform collects and curates courses from all over the web and in physical settings and provides a personalized map and suggested learning path to those who want to take control of their own learning. There is no need for a formalized traditional structure but rather a flexible programming structure that aligns with individual learning goals. 

At KNoDE we define underserved individuals with respect to education in varying forms. More specifically, we define underserved individuals as anyone who does not have access to quality content and guidance toward achieving their own learning goals. Essentially, anyone who wants to take charge of their learning and have access to a support service that will nurture them along the way.

• To be even more specific, there are those individuals that have access and are self motivated but require guidance as they are often confused on what to focus on for the future skills and traditional education is inhibiting their progress.

• Another group of individuals that are considered underserved are those that have access to technology, aren’t self motivated and have had inadequate access or experiences with the current education system. 

• Furthermore, those that don’t have access to quality education due to external circumstances, for example, school closures or living in areas that have inadequate access to technology. 

• Lastly, there are those that don’t have access to technology or education systems due to disparities caused by political and global situations, such as the pandemic.

We believe our platform can serve all these groups as we scale. However, our focus for the time being is to ensure that the former examples, such as those that require guidance and have access to technology can benefit, and as we scale, to develop an offline platform that can be loaded on to a mobile device and accessed anywhere by anyone. 

Our team has conducted interviews with parents, teachers, and students to determine the needs and potential for the future of education. We’ve also conducted research collecting information from varying organizations of authority such as OECD, UNESCO, WEF (World Economic Forum), and HolonIQ. We have concluded that research has demonstrated 3 key areas whereby global education is headed and what is needed for the future of education and work. These areas include:

1. Authentic learning experiences;

2. Flexible programming and curriculum;

3. Support for independent learning and student agency.

We define authentic learning experiences as identifying and supporting an individual's interest in a particular subject or topic and unlocking their purpose for wanting to grow and progress in that specific field of study. Authentic learning experiences connect student interest with the available content as well as what is happening in the world around them. According to UNESCO authentic learning experiences are those that “preserve students’ motivation, engagement and interest as well as their connection with school” (Daniel, 2020). KNoDE focuses on the learner first by assessing and identifying an individual's interest and then connects them with relevant and curated content along a path towards mastery. 

Flexible programming and curriculum is critical to develop learning autonomy which is an important facet for lifelong learning. Rigid and constricting learning environments hinder students creativity, motivation and can often cloud their purpose. Allowing flexible programming and curriculums opens opportunities to explore beyond the basic requirements and encourages students to engage more fully with their own learning. 

Independent learning and student agency refers to students taking ownership and responsibility for their learning, to be able to connect the dots between their past, present and future and to make the empowered choices that will help them reach their full potential. 

The KNoDE platform provides a central place that not only assists individuals to gain a better understanding of themselves, their passions and interests, but it also provides insight and understanding into the future we are creating. As such, individuals are empowered to begin aligning themselves with the future (careers, challenges, skills and trends) to better understand how they can actualise their potential by engaging with the opportunities available. 

Furthermore, and central to KNoDE, is the personalised learning map created for each individual based on their personal insights, future insights and the available learning opportunities (both digital and in-person) from around the world that align with their goals or desired outcomes. 

• Individuals' profiles, recommendations and suggestions will develop and change with the individual, as they grow and learn. This is based on their developing skills, knowledge, personal purpose and the evolving needs of the world we live in. 

• Global education becomes significantly more leveled as all individuals from around the world have access to the same learning opportunities. The content is out there, we just help connect the dots by aligning personal interests and skills with the relevant learning opportunities, and ensuring that relevance and purpose are key drivers.

• A gamified experience on the platform encourages a universal, safe and enjoyable way to visualize, develop and present yourself to the world, while offering a central place to store, verify and display all your learning and development experiences.

KNoDE strives to revolutionise education globally by providing equitable learning opportunities to all by embracing the abundance of information and knowledge that already exists in the world, and through the use of technology, place this in the hands of curious minds. KNoDE envisions an educational future that is flexible, fluid and abundant. Individuals will be able to learn what is relevant and interesting to them and their future professions, while schools will be able to leverage the same insights and recommendations to help create more meaningful, purposeful and relevant learning experiences from what already exists. 

The Future of Education Challenge, facilitated by Purpose Alliance was the original meeting place for our team in 2020, where we engaged and explored our common passion for facilitating educational change as well as our common challenges and frustrations. Since the challenge, our team (composed of four individuals from Brazil, Canada, Lithuania and South Africa) has continued to engage with the intention of creating a solution to one of the greatest challenges highlighted by the Global Covid-19 Pandemic, our traditional education systems are no longer serving the purpose they once did and are offering less relevance to the emerging world. As such, we began conceptualising a solution that would offer a necessary alternative focused on relevance, purpose and abundance. Our conceptualised platform is being explored presently regarding the feasibility of the platform and details of the service offering for the concept.

KNoDE believes in Democratising Education, and we strongly believe that the only way that this will be possible is to significantly disrupt the current (traditional) mindsets and structures. The KNoDE platform offers a radical new way to conceptualise education that is both relevant and realistic. The world is changing exponentially, and our educational systems need to be able to adapt and adjust to stay relevant. KNoDE offers the opportunity for not only individuals to embrace the learning possibilities globally, but allows schools to adapt and evolve to the current needs by shifting from institutions of traditional learning to institutions of learning and skill facilitation. This is achieved by: 

• Modernising learning by connecting individuals and schools, their knowledge, skills and their learning though a gamification interface.  

• Using Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence to ensure that the content, recommendations, and insights are relevant, significant and current.  

• Offering an alternative to traditional education that helps empower all students and encourages global connection.

Currently our solution is still in the concept development phase, and as such it is not able to serve individuals. However, when the KNoDE platform is launched we envision impacting 100,000 learners within a year, and 5 million learners in 5 years.

As we are still developing the concept of our platform, we have no specific measurables in place at present, however, the following are part of our considerations: 

• Relevance of learning for the world of the future

  • traditional schooling offering limited, restricted and exit examination focus VS self-directed learning guided by global trends.

• Reduce Waste (time and money)

  • Content vs Skills learned 

  • Upskilling new staff to be competent vs onboarding staff with specific skills required.

• Continued Learning 

  • Desire to continue learning (self driven).

4 Part-Time team members at present. 

The team met during a 'Purpose Alliance Challenge' in 2020 where a shared passion for education and positive change was identified, balanced with the shared frustrations and concerns about the future of education. All four members are passionately determined to disrupt the current educational systems, not only for their own children, but for all learners. The team's diverse backgrounds and experiences only add to the depth of the team.

Orlando (Brazil) is currently a results-orientated executive at the Daimler Group. He has a keen interest in thinking differently and expanding his mindset, and is involved with OpenExO, Purpose Alliance andSingularity University.

Paulina (Lithuania) is a passionate and positive thinker, believer and doer who’s involved in a mentorship programme (WomenGoTech), and engaged with Purpose Alliance (2020) after being motivated to facilitate educational change following a frustrating process of seeking relevant schooling for her own children.

Karim (Canada) is a software developer turned educator, an exponential thinking and conscious edupreneur seeking to inspire personal transformation and life-long learning. He has extensive experience in curriculum development, educational consulting and technical integration for best practice in both physical and digital classrooms. 

Lloyd (South Africa) is a practicing psychologist, coach and consultant with a passion for learning, development, relationships and problem-solving. His out-of-the-box thinking and ability to metaphorically reconceptualize concepts and challenges creates fresh perspectives and renewed focus. With many years of experience within the educational context, he is determined to facilitate much needed change in mindsets around learning, teaching and the future.

Our approach for building a diverse leadership team is strongly supported by the fact that we are based in various countries. Between our leadership team, we represent four countries and continents including Brazil (South America), Canada (North America), Lithuania (Europe), and South Africa (Africa); and as a result are fluent in multiple languages including English, Lithuanian, Portuguese, and Russian. It is because of these differences that strengthens us to reach boundless potential in solving for the future of education. However, our difference of opinions also drives and unites us towards our one commonality, and that is - we are all parents. We are the mothers and fathers of young curious minds. We’ve seen how the current education system needs to change first hand regardless of the school models such as public, private, specialized schools such as Montessori or Waldorf have presented to our children. None of these have worked or adapted to the global needs of children today and are not set up to support our children for the world of tomorrow. It is because of our growth mindsets and common struggles as parents that we feel we can bring value not only to our respective nations but to all children globally. KNoDE is more than an educational platform at face value, it is the work of a dedicated team that values pluralism and through this lens seeks to solve the challenge of developing a more equitable and inclusive culture for all.

A major reason for applying to the Solve challenge is because as parents ourselves, we have seen the effects of the current education system from multiple perspectives and cultural contexts on our own children. We believe we can positively impact the way education is currently being conducted to support children, parents, and teachers world-wide. We all believe in a world that has an abundance of opportunity, especially when it comes to learning, however, education has often taken a backseat in providing solutions that go beyond the content and course creation landscape. We’d like to change that perspective and develop a solution that not only engages but inspires young minds to want to learn in a manner that extends beyond prescriptive modes that our and majority of the young population face today. We’d like to develop an experience that supports all individuals regardless of background or societal limitations they may have been placed in, and to do that we require a vehicle such as MIT Solve that aligns with our own values. We believe in the MIT Solve’s mission and we feel that there is a synergy between the idea behind the KNoDE platform and the objective and vision that this challenge has sought out to solve for.

As can be seen throughout the application, we are at a stage whereby our research and needs have enough value that we’d like to gain support on developing the next phase of our business idea. Our concept has a sound framework for what we need to do and how to develop it through the use of technology but there is still more work to be done to ensure we have explored all avenues with respect to the overall strategy in different areas. We feel that we’ve done our due diligence to gather a strong leadership team and ideate on our work enough through research, surveys and customer interviews within our current scope and capabilities; however, we also understand that there is much work in varying areas in which we would require guidance and mentorship in moving forward to making our concept become a reality. This is why we’ve checked all the above in order to gain as much support as possible. Our idea is grand yet we also understand that we are in a very early stage in which we would benefit from formal guidance in how to proceed to ensure success for everyone.

One of the partners we’d like to work with is the Patrick J. McGovern Foundation as their mission to provide sustainable futures through the use of technology such as AI matches with the direction that we’d like the KNoDE platform to do as well.

Another partner that aligns with our vision and massive transformative purpose is Save the Children, as their focus provides information and humanitarian efforts in all areas, including education for young populations.

Finally, Future Planet Capital and Alfred P. Sloan Foundation are both partners that would be great to work with considering their affiliations with many of the top research and academic institutions that focus on education.

Thus, these seem to be the best partners that would support in varying areas that our platform solves for which include technology, specifically AI, focusing on younger demographics, and finally education research.

The KNoDE platform is based on developing solutions usingArtificial Intelligence and Machine Learning for processing recommendations on the best learning pathways for young minds. Our concept is reliant on curating content that already exists in abundance and mapping and suggesting the best path forward for upskilling, reskilling, and discovering new learning pathways customized for the learner. Ultimately, we envision the KNoDE platform to be the Netflix or Spotify of the education world whereby the learner has the ability to learn at their pace based on their interests and ultimately, can narrow down the overwhelming data that various other content platforms such as Coursera, EdX, a multitude of universities and schools have to offer. A tailored approach which can only be solved using the most up-to-date algorithms. Finally, considering the diverse representation of our leadership team, we also take into consideration the ethics and trustworthy applications of our platform so as to reduce bias and are committed to increase transparency for all those that use the platform on how data is being collected and used.

The KNoDE platform is based on developing solutions using Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning for processing recommendations on the best learning pathways for young minds. Our concept is reliant on curating

content that already exists in abundance and mapping and suggesting the
best path forward for upskilling, reskilling, and discovering new
learning pathways customized for the learner. Ultimately, we envision
the KNoDE platform to be the Netflix or Spotify of the education world whereby the learner has the ability to learn at their pace based on their interests and ultimately, can narrow down the overwhelming data that various other content platforms such as Coursera, EdX, a multitude of universities and schools have to offer. A tailored approach which can only be solved using the most up-to-date algorithms.
Finally, considering the diverse representation of our leadership team,
we also take into consideration the ethics and trustworthy applications
of our platform so as to reduce bias and are committed to increase
transparency for all those that use the platform on how data is being
collected and used.

Education across the world is in a state of crisis with institutions scrambling to plug the holes in outdated systems that are not aligned with the world, or the needs of tomorrow and thus continue to increase the divide between the haves and have-nots. KNoDE is focused on redefining education from a restrictive and constrained, out-dated system to one of abundance, choice, and driven by purpose. This is achieved through integrating Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning to connect learners with content and courses from various education providers and lead them throughout their learning journeys with the aim of democratizing the world's education by removing barriers and reliance on physical classrooms and restrictions of traditional structured learning models. We plan to empower 1 million learners by 2025 to build and map their learning journey through globally accessible content that is readily available in a meaningful and manageable way.