TAK-TAK-TAK System: learning through ICT

Education is essential for the development of societies, unfortunately students with socioeconomic disadvantages are more likely to have a poor-quality education. The basic level of competence is necessary to participate in society.

Inoma devised an innovative free system that combines technology and fun to drive the best in education. The TAK-TAK-TAK system consists of educational video games for children and a platform for parents and teachers that allows them to learn about digital tools for teaching, develop pedagogical strategies based on high-quality digital educational content,  follow up their children's progress, and access to a fellowship environment through a forum, blog, and MOOCs. 

The use of digital tools in education promotes better academic performance and helps students develop 21st century competencies. This represents better job opportunities, social mobility, reducing the digital divide and therefore participation in society that guarantees an increase in the quality of life.

In Mexico, a lack of a minimum quality education, deteriorated educational strategies, and lack of use of Information Technologies (IT) produce social and economic divides that prevent children from disadvantaged backgrounds to fulfill their potential. Before the pandemic,it was already facing a learning crisis, since around 80% of students in primary school didn’t reach the expected knowledge in reading comprehension and mathematics.

The COVID-19 pandemic has generated interruption in the educational system that has affected almost 1,600 million students around the world, therefore, 94% of students have been affected all over the world ”(United Nations, 2020). In México low-income people are the ones that have been most affected because they do not have the technological accessibility that is required for the virtual school modality, this inequality has caused that the students drop out of school. according to INEGI 33.6 million were enrolled in the 2019-2020 school year, however, 740  thousand of them didn’t complete it for reasons associated with the pandemic; for the 2020-2021 school year, the number of enrollments decreased to 32.9 million and 5.2 million did not enroll due to financial complications. 

The TAK-TAK-TAK System aimed at this population has great educational value, easy access, and simple scalability.

The TAK-TAK-TAK system allows children to learn through video games and digital content, and  teachers and parents to improve their own lesson planning through a wide range of digital resources previously revised and classified to enrich teacher´s lessons, consult real time students reports, connect with their peers, share knowledge, strategies, and train through MOOCs. 

TAK-TAK-TAK video games include subjects such as: Math, Reading, Grammar, Spelling, Science, Values, Economic Inclusion and Arts, they also reinforce social-emotional and digital skills. They have been developed based on the comprehensive basic education curriculum ( K-6) and in accordance with most national curricula, the American Common Core, and Skills of the XXI century defined by UNESCO. 

Each community can decide the pedagogical strategies that work best within its planning and solve the particular needs that concern them. . In the short term, a better education is achieved; in the long run, less economic and social inequality.

To carry out a face-to-face intervention, Inoma looks for low resources communities,  and conducts an ethnographic study to learn about their problems, causes, and needs. Inoma deploys TAK-TAK-TAK system mostly in schools, adapting the intervention to their needs and the teachers digital competences for children between 6 and 12 in vulnerable regions teachers from public schools in Mexico, Central and South America. First, Inoma shows them the benefit of integrating TTT system in their teaching planning. Then, throughout the school year, they integrate a pedagogical strategy adapted to their needs and knowledge. Through labtak.mx they access the strategy and follow up their students progress through activity reports. The intervention focuses on the appropriation of the system for a subsequent replication, independently of our intervention. That is why the implementation’s objective is also to strengthen their capacity of creating pedagogical strategies based on digital tools. 

Students learn through fun educational video games and other digital content reinforcing their competences, knowledge, and digital and socio-emotional skills. TAK-TAK-TAK offers personalized learning according to their knowledge and skills through predictive algorithms in all subjects.

The TAK-TAK-TAK system, allows children to learn through TAK-TAK-TAK video games (100) including subjects such as: Math, Reading, Grammar, Spelling, Science, Values, Economic inclusion, and Arts, they also reinforce socio-emotional and digital skills. 

LabTak allows teachers to adapt their work to the needs of the 21st century through a library of quality educational content, they also familiarize with the use of technology and digital academic programs.  

This learning mechanism is beneficial for both teachers and students as it promotes the development of 21st century skills, which will allow them to progress at a personal, work and therefore community level.

We have created an effective and efficient free educational product that has been tested and used primarily in Mexico. We are convinced that this educational solution can impact millions of communities on the planet. As a web-based educational tool has easy access and scalability, any user interested in it can have access. In the other hand, LabTak is designed to be nurtured by the content that the same community of teachers create, and share. A variety and flexibility of resources shared by users secure growth of users and engagement. Even though LabTak is a free tool, it also contemplates personalized content with a recovery fee to continue investing in generating and curating new content, with the goal of reaching sustainability: more users guarantee more income. 

The TAK-TAK-TAK (TTT) system approaches the lack and quality of innovative educational content for children with low resources in Mexico and the world. We make our system innovative by offering offline solutions (Tak-Server and Tak-USB), which lets children under any connectivity situation have an offline experience with our free educational video games. This project gives children the opportunity to improve their knowledge, abilities and competition. Unlike other ludic platform, TTT offers personalized learning with predictive algorithms in subjects (Spanish, Math, History, Ethics, among others) and with individualized feedback for parents and teachers.  

On the other hand, Labtak is the only platform available in Spanish that is comprehensive in nature. It allows teachers to design their own lesson planning, access to a wide range of digital resources previously revised and classified to enrich teacher's lessons, consult real time students reports, connect with their peers, share knowledge, strategies, and train through MOOCs.

Our technological solution allows us to address the challenges of education since our different developments allow children from anywhere in the world to play and learn through TTT video games. The TTT system is integral: it contributes to the development in academic, digital and socio-emotional skills that will allow kids to work and improve for their community while strengthening abilities and competencies that are fundamental to their human and sustainable development.

We currently have  771,371  registered girls and boys  in taktaktak.com, and 34,027 teachers and parents in labtak.mx.

By the end of 2021 we have proposed to benefit 845,000 girls and boys with TAK-TAK-TAK and 36,700 teachers and parents with LabTak. 

By the end of 2025 we have proposed to benefit 1,177,000 girls and boys with TAKAK-TAK and 53,300 teachers and parents with LabTak. 

Through the application of pre-intervention and post-intervention tests of the system and through our database. We will measure how teachers, girls and boys are able to apply the acquired knowledge. Initial and partial questionnaires will be applied to teachers about their perception of technology and its uses in class. These questionnaires will be developed by experts in learning to develop digital skills. Similarly, pre and post intervention tests of the project will be applied to both teachers and students to verify the effectiveness and appropriation of the TAK-TAK-TAK System.

Indicators: 

1. Teachers that took LabTak training and can perform basic planning for their classes using LabTak.

2. Teachers that understand teaching strategies based on didactic content such as TAK-TAK-TAK.

3. Teachers that implement LabTak’s pre-designed strategies which include the  use of digital content.

4. Teachers design one or more educational plans in LabTak.mx with digital content to implement them in their classroom.

5. Teachers evaluate their students’ progress through LabTak performance reports for TAK-TAK-TAK video games.

6. Teachers that have more than 3 planning strategies developed,  spent a minimum of 3 hours on the site, and reviewed at least 3 sections.

7. Play time of girls and boys in TAK-TAK-TAK and their progress in video games.

• Research and Data analysis: 1full-time workers (FTW) and 1social service student (SSS).

• Technology and video games: 3FTW and 2SSS.

• Education: 2FTW and 1SSS

• Deployment: 2FTW and 1SSS.

• Institutional Development: 2FTW and 4SSS.

• Administration and Legal: 2FTW and 2SSS. 

• COO: 1FTW.

• CEO: 1FTW.

Inomas’ experience in developing serious video games for children, and the comprehensive teachers´ platform, LabTak, has resulted in a consolidated team formed by experts in different areas: educational content, data analysis, technology and game development, deployment of programs, fundraising, and marketing. Inoma has 14 full-time workers. 

We have a solid team that ranges between 3 to 10 years of experience with the organization. We have a circular and organic organizational structure that allows great flexibility and adaptability to the needs that the organization is facing.Our board is fully engaged with the program and will give advice to the team and follow closely all steps that are required to reach the stated goals. This allows a constant flow of information between areas as well as encourages creativity and innovation in the search for solutions.

Regarding our implementation record we have worked with more than 700 public schools in Mexico and Latam. We have reached more than 50 poor public schools in indigenous communities in Mexico (Mayas, Mazahuas, Tzotziles, Tzentales).

To achieve social change, and to impact more teachers and students, we work hand in hand with educational and local authorities and with our partners, donors, and suppliers for developing more content and offering our free platforms to more beneficiaries. Being a digital educational tool allows easy access, scalability, and low cost in maintenance.

We are a horizontal organization in which everyone has autonomy to be the expert on their subject and each member of the team has an important value within the organization and something to contribute, while we learn from each other. We support feminists, LGBT and all movements that act inpursuit of equality and justice. We are sure that the differences between people are a positive value, which enriches our team.

We have created an effective and efficient educational tool that optimized the design and innovation of the planning. Solve will help us finish the development of the site and its offline solutions. This will allow a generation of a learning community, enrich teachers learning, and unfold the system more easily. With variety and flexibility of content and pedagogical resources the a growth in users and permanence rises. We are looking to adapt technology trends in basic education, for increase productivity and prepared new generation into the new jobs and industries. This tool will encourage entrepreneurship and creativity in problem solving. 

We are convinced that this educational solution can impact millions of communities on the planet. For that reason, we are looking to make partnerships with MIT Solver network of professionals to improve our product’s areas of opportunity, strengthen it to have an effective and efficient scalability and expansion. Also, we want to have access to MIT Solver funding, media and conference exposure, and technological mentorship, as one of the main pillars of this project is technology.

From the beginning, Inoma has worked with the philosophy of being integrators and has achieved more than 100 alliances with different sectors (private, public and education, technology, etc.). However, we consider it fundamental to build these alliances with the international community as well, and we would love to be part of the MIT Solver network because they are committed, open-minded and are the best in technological matters.

To achieve social change, and to impact more teachers and students, we work hand in hand with educational and local authorities and with our partners, donors, and suppliers for developing more content and offering our free platforms to more beneficiaries. Being a digital educational tool allows easy access, scalability, and low cost in maintenance. We are looking forward to maximizing our social change and impact. This might include improving our content, data analysis, deployment and financial strategies.

Inoma’s partnerships' goals are to grow, expand and sustain our projects. Alliances with UNICEF and UNESCO could help develop teaching strategies where children learn about their rights, the environment and climate change; contributing to build inclusive knowledge societies. Also that they are prepared to work demands focused on technology, and not to be unemployed or underemployed and create prosperous and sustainable livelihoods for themselves.

Alliances with English educational sites such as: Pulitzer centre, Common Sense, and Digital Promise (Learner Variability Project) could help LabTak enrich its content because they have valuable programs of education that could be translated and integrated into LabTak. This will make the content of the classes provide students with greater knowledge, clear explanations and give them tools on how problems are fought in the 21st century in developed countries.

MIT’s network of professionals could help improve the areas of opportunity of our product through research and innovation.

As a result of the success of TTT in a school environment, we have consolidated integration models in other contexts such as refugee camps, so that children who are most in need, learn through our video games, develop their skills regardless of adversity that they go through, in any part of the world, allowing them not to abandon their studies and reinforcing their knowledge.