Last Mile Math

Quality transition to algebra for kids in the Last Mile & Emergencies   

    PROBLEM

According to UNESCO, in 2016, 38 in 100 middle-school aged kids in low-income countries are out of school--that's 20 million kids, mostly indigenous, in rural areas (Last Mile) and refugee camps (Emergencies). Almost half of them reached basic numeracy, but dropped out just before transition to algebra--the crucial step in education of STEM professionals. What conspires against them?

• Kids miss school often because:
  • School is too far or travel too dangerous
  • They must work to help family survive
  • Stress or malnutrition keep them at home.
• Catching up in linear, grade-specific curriculum is difficult.
• Math teachers are nonexistent or scarce, unable to customize for catching-up.
• Their teaching is still based on lecturing, memorizing and repetition.

We cannot fix their circumstances overnight, but we can help them transition to algebra despite the limitations.

    OUR SOLUTION

LastMileMath is a customizable math program that counts on kids' ability to teach each other. It is based on Peer-to-Peer Learning and Single Room School model and taught by local volunteers within local limitations.

At the end of their first term, our Bolivian program's 4th graders are happily solving equations with one unknown--a feat not every highschool student in US can boast.

Small mixed-age (5th-8th grade) groups work together informally on story-like mixed-age math problems we design for each group according to previous session's outcomes. A few kids have an idea, pitch it to others and solve it together, by any means they choose. THEN teacher shows how to write it, names the concept. It might be the first for some kids, but some remember it next time and are dying to show the others. Soon, the group isn't afraid to try new things due to continuous positive reinforcement from the teacher AND their classmates.

Thus, we customize teaching weekly for the group and kids customize in class for each other.

Teacher reports how many kids understood the solver's explanation within assigned time, NOT how many solved unaided.

Teacher can be any local adult (college student, refugee, international volunteer fluent in language) with decent math skills and patience for children. We train them to facilitate discussion, rather than lecture.

We invest in capacity building through teachers deeply committed to their community, train them to design LMM curriculum and provide access to peer support and teaching resources.

    HOW WILL IT CHANGE THE WORLD

Kids become comfortable with abstract concepts, continue learning math after the program even with sporadic access or poor teaching, increasing the chance they'll reach college. They are empowered by helping one another accomplish academic goals nobody expected in circumstances.

Volunteer teachers learn to facilitate analytical discussions that will serve them well in any career. They also get college credit (students) and much needed income (refugees) and are empowermed by helping children from their own community advance.

Capacity building ensures self-sustainable continuation for years to come.

This 3-dimensional approach enables indigenous and refugee communities to produce their own math teachers and STEM professionals to take over decision-making about their country's resources.

LastMileMath is 21st century version of rural single-room schools used world-wide for centuries.

• Teaches algebra NOW, impervious to irregular attendance and variations in preparedness.

• Lets the kids discover abstract concepts intuitively first, formal representations follow without pressure.

• Teacher's role is to facilitate, NOT to impart knowledge.

• Customized on community, group and personal level.

• Group instead of individual work creates more encouraging atmosphere.

• Has unlimited outreach after initial implementation.

• Can incorporate play therapy if needed.

• Uses information technologies to create and store materials, but requires minimal tech to access at location.

• Works in the fringe zones, might work in mainstream too.

We accomplished everything so far remotely: partnership solicitations, program development and final delivery.

    WE USE:

Google Drive dashboard in 3 modules:

• Teacher training: Teachers Manual, references, assignments, videos, training assessment (G-surveys).
• Curriculum: Math problems, rolling evaluation tables, class videos and photos, kids assessments before/after program.
• Administrative: teacher evaluation tables, training videos, collaborative space

WhatsApp for fast teacher support

Gmail and Skype for planning, training and coordination.

    WE WANT TO:

Setup each center for self-sustaining curriculum design:

• Design comprehensive LMM Dashboard with Adaptive Learning Algorithm and Curation linked to educational websites for sourcing of math problems.
• Incorporate off-line servers.

Expand training program: resources for classroom management skills, child psychology, math dictionary for teachers.

Open pilot program in Palestine (Friends School in Ramallah) in September. For their community service requirement, upper class pupils 'teach' younger low-income kids who would otherwise not continue past 4th grade. Train a teacher or parent to do pre- and post-class prep.

Develop partnerships in Haiti and again in Zaatari refugee camp (Jordan).

Involve parents and whole community in opening of new programs.

Register as non-profit organization by December 2018.

Start 2 at-cost programs in Cambridge and New York.

Partner up with an off-line server and AI tools providers.

Our kids develop a habit to help classmates at every stage of education, acting as LMM ambasadors, building collaborative, not competitive work force.

Broadening the base in each program will increase rural/refugee STEM college enrollmetnt. Local communities will continuously improve math and produce their own math teachers, independent of foreign aid for years to come.

At-cost programs will pay for more rural/refugee programs AND satisfy the existing need for math in affluent societies too.

We want to become the go-to middle school math program for iNGO partners, for improvement of rural math and fast deployment in new emergencies.

In-person networking leads us to local partners (college administrators, iNGOs) with access to reliable pool of potential teachers and school principals. They recruit the teachers, source groups of kids and evaluate their needs, cycle after cycle. They arrange for use of existing spaces, making sure to follow UN Minimum Standards of Education.

Ensuring teacher benefits (college credit, supervision of student's work and reports, hourly pay, etc) helps retain local partners. Kids' improvement, as seen from Before VS After Assessments, and their enthusiasm for the program help retain parents' and school principals' commitment. And annual 3-day Math Fest will help reach more kids.

Pilot program in Zaatari and Azraq refugee camps in Jordan (completed in 2015, hopefully still impacting kids):

• 5 refugee teachers trained (method only, no curriculum)
• Estimated ~300 kids

Eeach semester (2/year) in Bolivia:

• 60 indigenous kids, in grades 4-6, in 5 schools
• 10 indigenous education students from the local college trained (teach our method, general teacher skills, refreshed their math concepts). They
  learn to process, plot and analyze the collected data in a research report that we supervised. Every 2 semesters we recruit new cohort of teachers.
  
• Assessments before and after of both kids and teachers show definite progress.

In Bolivia:

• 120 kids and 20 education students/volunteer teachers this year.
•  In 3 years total of 600+ kids and 60 teachers.

In Ramallah:

• 50-60 kids and 5-10 older pupils each term, 140 kids in a year.
• In 3 years 200 kids or more.

In Zaatari camp, Jordan:

• 500 kids and 10-20 refugee teachers in a year.
• 1500 kids and 10-50 teachers in 3 years.

In Haiti, in 3 years we could easily serve 300 kids and 30 teachers.

We expect at least half of our kids to enter high-school and every 10th of our teachers to continue teaching.

• Unshakeable belief that math is indispensable for education of analytical thinkers.

• Deep empathy for kids in the Last Mile & Emergencies.

• Proven commitment to continuous innovation in teaching and learning.

• Tangible success in Bolivian Andes with minimal resources.

• 5 decades (cumulative) of international expertise in middle-school math

• 4 decades of working with rural, indigenous, impoverished kids

• Expert use of information technologies for education.

• 4 decades of presenting to varied audiences, proposal writing and public speaking.

• Personal experience missing class extensively in middle school.

• Family roots in single room school history and knowledge of its joys and its perils.

Right now: personal funding, but setting up for the following:

Segment 1: Smaller donations by 100 people each year, $10,000/yr.

Segment 2: Yearly donations by few high-networth individuals. Start with

1 by the end of 2018 ($5,000), grow to 5 by end of 2019 for $25,000/yr.

Segment 3: Tuition from 2 at-cost programs. (4 groups x 10 kids each x twice a year x $1,000/kid) — (50 teacher hours/yr x 4 teachers x $40/hr) = $72,000/yr.

Segment 4: Yearly donations from philanthropies, $100,000/yr.

Grow all segments each year.

LMM is well positioned for this because:

Our success in Bolivia, belief in our commitment, and trust in our qualifications and experience can motivate our personal networks enough to provide Segment 1, maybe even Segment 2.

From my experience working in a major after-school (drilling) math program In Boston Metro and talking to my pupil's parents, I know there is a huge need for a non-drilling after-school math immersion in big cities. With minimal adjustments, we can start our at-cost programs immediately, and expand significantly each year.

And successes with both services (free and at-cost) would help with soliciting funds from foundations.

With connections established through SOLVE, Segments 1, 3 and 4 could be fairly attainable.

SOLVE can help us get the ears of iNGO and government administrators in the areas we want to serve, which will provide us with faster, more sustainable access to kids in need and a more reliable recruitment of local coordinators and teachers.

SOLVE can also help us develop partnerships with the tech providers, philanthropies and civil society who are seeking opportunities to help communities in need.

Recognition of our work through SOLVE will also provide us with access to MIT and other students in Boston Metro whom we would love to recruit for problem design and tech help.

Our Bolivian program is almost self-sustainable. But to partner with iNGOs and governments in new locations, our key barriers are:

• Gaining access to their decision makers. 
• Persuading them that we bring a huge value, even though we are a bare-bones non-profit that doesn't offer money or goods, only expertise and labor.

Barrier for out tech needs: funds and partnerships.

SOLVE's endorsement will earn us recognition and trust we need to penetrate these barriers and reach more communities around the world (and deploy quickly in emergencies) than we would ever be able to with our one-by-one solicitations and personal funds.