TONGO inspire learning

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) identifies cognitive and metacognitive skills as crucial for 2030, encompassing creative thinking, social and emotional skills, and practical and physical skills, which include the use of digital and computing tools. For their development, the OECD emphasizes the need for trained educators, students who connect their learning experiences with the real world and pursue learning with a sense of purpose, the interconnection of various topics, and an adaptive curriculum.

Educating citizens represents a significant responsibility and a complex challenge that numerous national and international entities aim to address in collaboration with schools. But the question remains: how?

The International Survey on Social and Emotional Skills (SSES), conducted by the OECD in 2019*, revealed that schools primarily engage in the development of socio-emotional skills through their regular activities and norms.

However, the constraints of tight schedules and the reliance on teachers to spearhead this development pose a high risk of relegating the cultivation of socio-emotional competencies to a secondary outcome of academic education.

This raises a critical question: do teachers possess sufficient tools, time, and knowledge for this task?

A notable proportion of educators acknowledge a significant gap in training for the development of students' social and emotional skills. Specifically, less than 60% of those teaching 15-year-olds and fewer than 55% of those teaching 10-year-olds, as reported in the SSES*, have received comprehensive training in this pivotal field.

To address this, teachers need sophisticated training in a broad set of skills and knowledge, enabling them to offer thoughtful, ongoing, and systematic support for the social and emotional learning of children

*OECD (2023), "Schools as hubs for social and emotional learning: Are schools and teachers ready?", OECD Education Spotlights, No. 4, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/f6d12db7-en. The survey includes 75 schools, 3000 students aged 10 and 15 in nine cities from different regions of the world, including: Bogotá, Manizales (Colombia), Daegu (Korea), Helsinki (Finland), Houston (United States), Istanbul (Turkey), Ottawa (Canada), Sintra (Portugal), and Suzhou (China). The SSES studied creativity, curiosity, empathy, cooperation, and other social and emotional skills.

TONGO IS an instructional design method that, through a formula, creates a connection between knowing how to do (academic content) and knowing how to be (socio-emotional competencies) simultaneously during the lesson planning, using metaphors as a common thread.

TONGO responds to the following teacher needs: Build a creative class in less time; Integrate social and emotional competencies in classes and curricula; and carry out more active learning sessions. The platform is our main channel to reach our customers, TONGO seeks to create a human digital space where relationships of trust are created by offering courses, support, and a community.

TONGO’s digital interface for teachers uses creative thinking as a foundation in an easy to use format yet backed with scientific rigor.  By providing a step by step guide, TONGO’s app stimulates the development of the teachers' creativity and appropriation of a digital platform whilst facilitating the design of lesson plans that connect holistically the mobilisation of knowledge, skills, attitudes and values. Furthermore, TONGO’s app includes the use of AI to support the creative processes required to create the connections as well as providing educators with previously uploaded content regarding social and emotional competencies as per the OECD framework based on the Big Five personality traits to further develop their own learnings about these topics. 

TONGO’S method helps teachers to: 

1. use creativity as a vehicle to create lesson plans that connect the academic content and social and emotional competencies simultaneously during the lesson plan, strengthening meaningful and long lasting learning; 

2. design sessions connected to reality and context that transcend the educational space, broaden understanding, promote exploration, inspire and motivate students; 

3. take ownership of their digital and technology skills by approaching the digital reality of today's AI world as an integral part of the learning experience. 

For TONGO, teachers are active subjects and subjects of action in the classroom, on whom rests the responsibility for what happens, why it happens and how it happens. That is why, TONGO  seeks to empower them so that, through practice and facilitating the ideation and planning of their classes, they make curricula more flexible by designing connected and meaningful learning experiences.

TONGO is an instructional design method designed for teachers and tutors of basic and secondary education who want to innovate in their classes, building more creative spaces with a greater impact and meaning, through the connection of the cognitive and metacognitive and the social and emotional dimensions. Initially, it is expected to work with teachers from Colombia, who number around 920,436, but with a view to expanding in Latin America and continuing with Canada, and the United States.

The use of Tongo aims at the comprehensive development of the child and youth population, as well as the development, strengthening and appropriation of creative thinking and digital technology appropriation by teachers.

The idea for Tongo was born 6 years ago from some fieldwork carried out with teachers from the Educational Institution Sebastián de Belalcázar (Medellín, Antioquia) during a process to recognize their needs in the face of the challenge of securing integral development in the educational sessions. Subsequently, a first pilot was developed and a new validation of its use and potential results of the complete method was carried out, with teachers from different parts of the country, of different grades and different subjects, which included, as a prelude, a process of training in creative thinking. Furthermore, a process of training was conducted last year with the public school Francisco Arango (Villavicencio, Colombia) where 45 teachers developed lessons plans using our method. 

The following needs have emerged from these processes, and our own experience as educators:

●  Difficulty articulating the academic content and developing soft skills at the same time in the classroom, whilst recognizing the teacher’s key role to do so;

●  Lack of having creative tools to design exciting sessions, connected with reality and that transcend the educational space;

●  Strengthening the use of digital technologies; and

●  Having a more efficient class planning, design and management process.

Tongo generates value by attending directly to these needs. For this, Tongo empowers teachers in the exploration and strengthening of their creativity for the design lesson plans, connected with reality and that transcend the educational space by facilitating the connection of the cognitive, rational content of the academic knowledge and the development of social and emotional learnings as the fundamental basis of any meaningful learning experience designed using the method. In addition, the project includes complementary resources such as consultancy, courses, templates and forums that allow the teachers to broaden their perspectives and nurture their work with other voices.

On the other hand, Tongo as a web application strengthens the appropriation of digital technologies through a dynamic and simple user experience that allows the development of digital skills in the use of technology tools and interfaces. Additionally, the interface is inspired by recent technological developments, allowing teachers to have an intuitive user experience that allows a recognition of new forms of interaction in the digital world.

Furthermore, the step by step product supports educators create challenges for students that support an integral approach to developing digital skills and social media use. 

The TONGO method was dreamed, designed and created by teachers in love with education, who seek with their work to positively impact society and who believe with all their hearts that giving life to other worlds is possible. TONGO is a product from educators for educators. Furthermore, TONGO has been improved after working with more than 65 educators from different areas, two public schools in Colombia and one principal. 

Camila Herrera Palacio

Process Engineer and MBA. She is in love with music, science and neuroeducation.

She has been a professor in the Faculty of Engineering of the EAFIT University and has shared her knowledge in projects in rural areas of Antioquia, which includes pedagogical and engineering processes with farmers.

(https://scienti.minciencias.gov.co/cvlac/visualizador/generarCurriculoCv.do?cod_rh=0001597353): (https://www.linkedin.com/in/maria-camila-herrera-palacio-6b7a5236/) 

Ana Maria Restrepo Echeverri

Industrial Designer, Marketing Specialist and MBA. She is in love with all expressions of art and language.

She has an experience of more than 10 years working in creative areas and more than 7 leading different types of work teams. She has been an entrepreneur, manager, professor at the Schools of Architecture and Engineering of the Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana and has worked on co-creation projects and the design of products and experiences for culture and education.

Isabel Gómez Vélez

Environmental Engineer; Master of Digital Arts and Humanities (UBC, Canada); Master of Education Cum Laude (Universidad de los Andes, Colombia), with specialisations in Creative Intervention, Financial and Tropical Ecosystems Management. She has 10 years of experience as educational consultant for NGOs and corporate organisations and as a professor of creative thinking and sustainability for design and engineering faculties and education. In the last 15 years she has developed various entrepreneurial projects in Colombia, Mexico, Norway and Canada.

Our solution, TONGO, straddles both the Prototype and Pilot stages of development. The method underpinning TONGO is currently in the Pilot stage, having undergone rigorous theoretical validation and practical application. This method has been extensively tested in various educational settings, confirming its effectiveness through both soft models and virtual sessions. These sessions involved 65 educators across multiple disciplines—from kindergarten to university level—and in diverse subjects such as mathematics, ethics, technology, and more. Educators using TONGO have successfully integrated our methodology into their lesson plans, demonstrating the method’s adaptability and impact in actual classroom settings.

Concurrently, the web app interface of TONGO is in the Prototype stage. We have developed an initial coding framework and utilised simulation tools like Miro to test the usability and integration of the method into a digital experience. This phase also includes the development and integration of a working GPT model to explore the interaction of AI with our web app, aiming to enhance the digital teaching tools and learning experiences offered. This prototype aims to refine our minimum viable product (MVP), ensuring that the interface effectively supports the method and enhances the user experience for educators. Our focus in this phase is to validate user interaction with both the content and the interface, facilitating a seamless digital implementation of the TONGO method.

The transition from method validation to digital execution underscores our commitment to evolving TONGO into a comprehensive educational tool that is both theoretically sound and practically viable. Our pilot has not only demonstrated TONGO’s capability to enhance educational outcomes but has also identified the necessity for a robust digital platform to scale its impact. The addition of AI capabilities is set to further revolutionise the way educators interact with our platform, making it more adaptive and responsive to the needs of both teachers and students.

This dual-stage development ensures that while TONGO’s method is already providing value in educational settings, its digital interface is being meticulously crafted to meet the high standards of usability and engagement required for wider adoption. By advancing in these parallel tracks, TONGO is poised to make a significant and scalable impact on the educational landscape, marrying content excellence with digital innovation.

We believe that Solve’s comprehensive support system is perfectly aligned to help us overcome the challenges we face and achieve our vision.

1. Capacity Building:

The tailored capacity-building workshops offered by Solve would help us enhance our business skills, particularly in areas like digital marketing, financial management, and operational scalability. These workshops would equip us with the necessary skills to navigate the complexities of the educational technology market effectively.

2. Expert Guidance and Mentorship:

Leadership coaching and access to a network of industry experts and mentors through Solve can be pivotal in refining our strategic approach and ensuring our growth is both sustainable and impactful.

3. Multifaceted Support:

We are at a critical juncture in our development, transitioning from pilot to a full-scale operational platform. The financial, technical, and strategic resources provided by Solve would be instrumental in navigating this phase. The initial $10,000 prize and potential access to further funding would significantly aid in refining our web interface and expanding our content offerings.

4. Resource Optimization:

The in-kind resources, such as software licenses and legal services, would lower our operational costs and allow us to allocate more resources towards innovation and user engagement. This support is vital for a tech-driven initiative like ours, where legal and software costs can be substantial.

5. Community and Networking:

Joining Solve’s community would offer us a unique platform to connect with other innovators and leaders who are also working to drive social impact in education through technology. These connections could lead to collaborative opportunities, enhance our learning, and provide new pathways for expansion.

6. Visibility and Credibility:

The media exposure and opportunities to present at conferences, as provided by Solve, would not only enhance our visibility but also bolster our credibility in the educational technology space. This recognition is essential for attracting new users, partners, and investors.

7. Impact Measurement Support:

Finally, the support in monitoring and evaluation will enable us to build robust impact measurement practices. This is crucial for us to continually assess the effectiveness of our platform and make data-driven improvements, ensuring our solution delivers real educational value to our users.

TONGOS's innovation lies in its unique blend of artificial intelligence (AI), creative instructional design, and a profound understanding of the socio-emotional learning landscape. Unlike traditional educational tools that focus solely on academic content delivery or, conversely, on socio-emotional aspects in isolation, TONGO harmonizes these elements into a cohesive learning experience. This synergy is what sets Tongo apart, making it not just a tool but a transformative platform for educators and students alike.

At its core, TONGO leverages AI to personalize learning experiences, ensuring that academic content is seamlessly integrated with social and emotional competencies. This AI-driven personalization means that TONGO can adapt to the educators and schools needs, promoting a more engaging and effective learning environment. Moreover, the use of creative instructional design allows for the curriculum to be dynamic and interactive, fostering an innovative learning atmosphere that encourages students to connect emotionally with the material.

TONGO's approach is innovative because it directly addresses the OECD's identification of cognitive, metacognitive, and socio-emotional skills as crucial for success in the 2030 landscape. By merging these elements, TONGO lesson plans prepare students not just for academic achievement but for real-world challenges, fostering a generation of learners who are resilient, empathetic, and adaptable.

In terms of catalyzing broader positive impacts, TONGO has the potential to inspire a paradigm shift in education. By demonstrating the effectiveness of integrating academic content with socio-emotional learning, TONGO can encourage other platforms and educational tools to adopt a more holistic approach to education. This could lead to a more widespread recognition of the importance of socio-emotional competencies in academic settings, influencing curriculum development and teaching strategies across the board.

Furthermore, TONGO could significantly change the educational market/landscape by setting new standards for what constitutes an effective learning tool. Its emphasis on AI and instructional design innovation positions it not just as a product but as a leading example of how technology can be harnessed to enhance education holistically. As schools and educational institutions seek to better prepare students for the complexities of the modern world, TONGO stands out as a solution that bridges the gap between academic rigor and the development of essential life skills.

TONGO's theory of change is rooted in the proven impact of integrating social and emotional learning (SEL) with academic instruction to enhance educational outcomes. This approach is supported by robust evidence, including our method's demonstrated effectiveness and extensive research indicating that SEL significantly boosts academic performance and student well-being.

Research underscores the transformative effects of SEL on academic success. For example, a meta-analysis of 424 studies across 53 countries showed that incorporating SEL into the curriculum not only enhances academic achievements but also improves students' social behaviours and emotional resilience. Similarly, studies involving over a million students have consistently demonstrated the positive impact of SEL on academic performance, with some programs showing average improvements of 13 percentage points in student outcomes over the long term.

Our MVP process with 43 schoolteachers has further validated these findings. By using TONGO, educators were able to design more engaging, relevant, and holistic class sessions that effectively integrate SEL with academic content. This approach has not only led to enhanced academic performance but also fostered a more inclusive and supportive educational environment.

The effectiveness of TONGO is echoed in testimonials from educators who have experienced firsthand the benefits of our platform. For instance, Otto Gomez, a school principal, noted that Tongo "very generously complements the pedagogical part, enhances creativity and teamwork, and generates significant learning." Such feedback confirms that Tongo's dynamic methodology supports educators in creating more meaningful and impactful learning experiences.

Training educators to implement SEL is crucial for maximising its benefits. Studies indicate that teachers well-versed in SEL are not only more effective and confident but also better equipped to handle work stress and prevent burnout. TONGO app facilitates this by providing a digital platform that simplifies the integration of SEL into daily teaching practices using AI, thereby enhancing teaching effectiveness and improving the overall school environment.

The logical framework of TONGO links our innovative method, web app and educational strategies (activities) to the immediate outputs of more dynamic class sessions and the long-term outcomes of improved academic and social and emotional competencies among students. By equipping educators with tools to seamlessly integrate SEL with academic learning, TONGO aims to catalyse a broader positive change across the educational landscape, making it more responsive to the needs of a digital age.

TONGO's approach is not just about changing how subjects are taught; it's about transforming the educational landscape by fostering an integrated development of cognitive and emotional skills. This holistic education model is crucial for preparing students to succeed in a rapidly evolving world and is supported by a wealth of evidence and positive feedback from the educational community.

Impact Goals:

1. Enhance Student Engagement and Academic Performance: By integrating SEL into the academic curriculum, we aim to boost student engagement, improve academic performance, and reduce behavioral problems. We measure success through increased student participation rates, improved grades, and decreased incidents of classroom disruptions.

1. Empower Educators with Effective Teaching Tools: We strive to provide educators with innovative tools that make lesson planning more efficient and teaching more impactful. Our progress is measured by educator feedback on the usability and effectiveness of the platform, the frequency of TONGO tool usage, and qualitative improvements in teaching strategies as reported by teachers.

1. Foster Emotional and Social Competencies: Our goal is to cultivate students' emotional intelligence, resilience, and social skills, which are critical for personal and professional success. We evaluate our impact by assessing changes in student behavior through surveys and observational data from educators, looking specifically at improvements in empathy, cooperation, and conflict resolution skills.

Measurement of Progress: To systematically track our progress towards these goals, we use a combination of qualitative and quantitative indicators. 

1. Academic Achievement: Increase in student test scores and grades in subjects using the TONGO method.

2. Engagement Metrics: Data on student participation rates in classes using TONGO, including time on task and qualitative feedback from students about their engagement levels.

3. Behavioural Improvements: Reduction in classroom behavioural issues as reported by teachers and school administrators.

4. Educator Satisfaction and Usage: Regular surveys and interviews with educators to gauge satisfaction with the TONGO platform and frequency of use. This includes feedback on the training process and its impact on their teaching efficiency and effectiveness.

5. Social and Emotional Skills Assessment: Pre- and post-intervention assessments of students’ social and emotional skills to monitor changes and improvements over time.

TONGO aligns with UN Sustainable Development Goals 4.4 and 4.7 by enhancing ICT skills through our digital platform and integrating global citizenship and sustainable development education into curricula, teacher training, and student assessments, thereby promoting relevant skills and comprehensive learning for sustainable development.

TONGO leverages technology to create an integrated educational platform that combines the benefits of artificial intelligence (AI), web-based applications, and user-centered design principles to improve the teaching and learning experience. At its core, TONGO utilises a web app interface that provides educators with a seamless, intuitive session planning dashboard accessible from any internet-connected device.

The technology stack of TONGO includes:

Web Application: The TONGO platform allows educators to log in and access a dashboard. This dashboard serves as the command center where users can manage the design of learning experiences, access educational courses, use customizable templates, and engage with an active community of educators. The platform is designed to be user-friendly, promoting ease of navigation and interaction to enhance the user experience.

Artificial Intelligence (AI): TONGO incorporates AI to personalize the educational experience. By analyzing user input and behavior, the AI component suggests customized content and teaching strategies that align with the specific needs of each educator and their students. This AI-driven personalization ensures that the learning experiences created using the TONGO method are both effective and engaging.

Interactive Design Dashboard: Within the web app, users initiate session planning by creating a project that leads them to a design dashboard. This dashboard guides them through a series of steps underpinned by the TONGO method, supporting educators in crafting well-structured and impactful learning sessions. The dashboard also allows educators to track their progress in courses offered through the platform and monitor the development of their session design projects.

Data Analytics: To continuously improve the user experience and the effectiveness of the educational content, TONGO uses data analytics to gather insights from user interactions and feedback. This data is crucial for refining the platform and ensuring that it meets the evolving needs of educators and students alike.

Community Integration: A key feature of the TONGO platform is its community functionality, which enables educators to connect, share experiences, and collaborate on teaching strategies. This community is supported by technology that facilitates communication, resource sharing, and collaborative problem-solving among users.

By integrating these technological elements, TONGO not only supports the practical aims of enhancing educational outcomes but also fosters a community of practice that enriches the professional lives of educators. This approach positions TONGO as a comprehensive solution that uses modern technology to address educational challenges, aiming to benefit both people and the planet by preparing students with the skills needed for the future. This alignment with MIT Solve’s mission underscores our commitment to driving innovation in the educational sector through technology.

Full-time staff: 2 instructional designers and education researchers

Part-time staff:2 visual designers 

Partners: 2 a tech developer company and a local public school

6 years

Our team is made up of three women teachers committed to education. We have all worked with different communities, which has allowed us to understand education and its latent needs. Maria Camila, one of the founders, worked for more than five years in education with adult farmers from marginalized areas of Colombia. Isabel has worked with teachers and students from public and private schools in the city of Medellín developing their creative thinking and social and emotional competencies. Ana Maria worked on culture and education projects with adolescents in the city of Medellín. The experience of these three founders, accompanied by the feedback from teachers from schools from different economic strata, was combined to create a method that would provide a solution to the needs of teachers.Further, most of our work with TONGO has been done with public educators in Colombia who have the least access to this type of services. 

Our platform will be easily accessed by teachers with all levels of digital literacy, as one of our core principles is to ensure that TONGO serves as a support system to promote learning and better uses of AI in educators that derive in more contextually relevant lessons for students. We believe in the ability of TONGO to transform the classroom into a safe, healthy space, where diversity, equality and inclusion coexist healthily and become foundations for the education of our children.

TONGO operates on a social business model, designed to empower educators by enhancing their ability to create engaging and dynamic classroom sessions that integrate academic knowledge with crucial social and emotional skills. Our platform serves as a key tool for teachers who are early adopters of new methods and sharing their successes, thereby attracting peers to our community.

Our core value proposition is to enable educators to explore and apply their creativity, designing classroom experiences that are deeply connected with real-world issues and can transcend traditional educational boundaries. TONGO provides this through a user-friendly digital interface that simplifies the integration of academic and socio-emotional learning. The platform meets critical teacher needs by helping them build creative, engaging and dynamic classes more efficiently and integrate social and emotional skills into their curricula. 

Our primary customers are educators, particularly those looking to innovate and improve their classroom strategies. However, our platform also benefits educational institutions by providing them with a tool to enhance their overall teaching quality and student engagement, making it relevant to school administrators and educational policymakers.

Revenue is generated through subscriptions for individual teachers and licence agreements with educational institutions. Additionally, we offer premium services that include advanced features, specialised courses, and personalised consultancy, which cater to the more specific needs of advanced users or larger educational entities.

Our platform’s strength lies in the expertise of our team, who bring extensive experience in education, creative thinking, and learning sciences. The key activities include maintaining the platform, supporting the community through regular updates and engagements, marketing to reach and retain users, and developing new content and features that respond to the evolving educational landscape. Strategic partnerships with educational entities, content creators, and technology providers (like Miro) enhance our offering and enable effective ideation and planning.

We collaborate with both public and private stakeholders in the education sector, including educational authorities, NGOs, and other organisations that promote innovative educational practices. Our costs are primarily associated with technology maintenance, content and curriculum development, hosting services, visual design, and legal expenditures to ensure compliance and protect our intellectual property.

In alignment with the concept of a social business, TONGO prioritizes impact over profit, reinvesting any financial gains back into the platform to improve and expand our offerings. This approach not only promotes sustainability and scalability but also ensures that we continue to make education more inclusive, effective, and aligned with the needs of both teachers and students in the digital age.

TONGO's financial sustainability plan leverages a diversified revenue model, ensuring a steady income flow to support ongoing operations and impact scaling. This model allows us to remain operationally independent while fostering growth and innovation.

Revenue Streams:

Subscriptions: TONGO offers a subscription model that provides educators with full access to our comprehensive educational resources, course materials, and community support. This recurring revenue stream ensures consistent funding and supplies educators with essential tools for their classrooms.

Licensing Fees: We form licensing agreements with educational institutions to integrate TONGO into their teaching frameworks. This not only expands our user base but also secures bulk revenue, facilitating extensive platform development and maintenance.

Premium Services: TONGO also caters to users seeking customized solutions through premium services, including bespoke course development and one-on-one consultancy. These services not only enhance user satisfaction and engagement but also contribute additional revenue.

Strategic Partnerships and Grants: Our collaborations with educational bodies and grants from organizations invested in educational innovation strengthen our financial resources. These partnerships typically lead to pilot projects and broader platform adoption, crucial for demonstrating value and securing further funding.

Monetization Strategy:

Our strategy includes a Free Plan, which allows basic platform access with limitations to encourage upgrading. The Paid Plan, priced affordably per month, offers full functionality, including unlimited project creation and complete access to courses and community features. This plan targets committed users who benefit from the platform’s full capabilities.

Additional Revenue Sources:

Revenue is also generated through charges for specialised courses and personalised class design services. Future plans include monetizing certain downloadable resources, enhancing our service offerings.

Funding and Investment:

We as founders have invested $53.100 in equity, covering research, design and preliminary development phases of the web app, reflecting our commitment and belief in its potential. We are actively seeking additional funding to complete the development of our web interface and support platform maintenance. This includes applying for grants and exploring potential equity partnerships to secure the necessary investment for this crucial phase.

Financial Planning Success:

Although in the early stages of revenue generation, our financial planning is significantly reinforced by insights gained from a tech entrepreneurial mentorship program at the University of British Columbia. This program has provided us with critical guidance on refining our business model and aligning our offerings with market expectations. Our comprehensive market research and user feedback further ensure that our pricing model and service offerings meet the evolving needs of our target audience. The structured pricing strategy and introduction of paid services are specifically designed to cater to these needs, reflecting our proactive approach to adapting and thriving in the educational market.

We anticipate that our varied revenue model will cover our expected expenses in the long term, supporting TONGO’s sustainable expansion. By continuously providing value to educators and students, TONGO aims to remain not just a viable business but a transformative force in education, enhancing teaching and learning through innovative digital solutions.