In the February 2023 edition of EdTech Mondays Kenya, we explored the topic of the mainstreaming of hybrid models of learning as a means of ensuring that all learners in Kenya can be accommodated in a learning environment that can be in-person or virtual. In hybrid learning, educators can teach remote and in-person students at the same time using tools like video conferencing to make this viable and sustainable. Hybrid learning is increasingly being seen as a way of ensuring that all learners can be accommodated in a learning environment that can be in-person or virtual.

During last month’s episode, we established that hybrid models of learning in Kenya can give learners an opportunity to better understand educational content outside the traditional classroom experience and also offer a way of learning that does not require them always be in a classroom. In addition, it also allows parents and caregivers of young learners to play a more engaged role in their education leading to better participation and understanding. We also learned from last month’s episode that educators need to be trained and equipped to deliver hybrid learning models effectively and efficiently whilst adopting new teaching techniques and educational technologies.

In the March 2023 edition, we will look to go further in understanding how hybrid learning models can be used to improve foundational literacy and numeracy among young learners in Kenya. Foundation literacy and numeracy are broadly defined as a child’s ability to read basic texts and solve basic mathematics problems such as addition and subtraction. It also enables children to become independent and engaged readers and writers who can transition from ‘learning to read’ to ‘reading to learn’ and from ‘learning to write ‘ to ‘writing for academic success and pleasure’.

In Kenya, when it comes to foundational literacy and numeracy, a learning assessment by a non-governmental organization called Uwezo in 2021 showed that 60 percent of grade four learners could not read a grade three appropriate text. In 2014 one out of every 10 Kenyan children completed primary school without having fully mastered class two skills, the report showed. These basic skills are necessary for children to understand and engage with the material they are taught in school and to acquire technical and higher-order skills as they progress in their studies. Lost learning that takes root in the earliest years of children’s lives fails to narrow in the following years.

Hybrid learning models can help close the gaps for young learners in Kenya, where foundational literacy and numeracy is concerned. Moreover, the need for foundational literacy and numeracy skills has acquired greater prominence in our increasingly complex and rapidly changing digital-first world, where individuals continuously need to expand their knowledge and learn new skills to keep up with the pace of change. Our conversation will explore how the uptake of technology-driven education or EdTech in the form of hybrid models of learning can increase the quality of education at foundational levels for literacy and numeracy. Our panelists for the session were:

Christine Akello – ICT in Education trainer, Global E Schools and Communities Initiative

Abdinoor Alimahdi – Founder, M-Lugha

Anne Kibara – Teacher, Ng’undu Primary and Junior Secondary School

Session Moderator – Moses Kemibaro

Watch The YouTube Video Here:

Listen To The Audio Podcast Here