Providing access to education in Sub-Saharan countries through Content-Oriented technology

Abstract

Access to education has been a growing concern for children in developing economies, namely lack of access to quality customized online content in the classroom and at home; lack of tools that make learning fun and effective in key subject areas; and lack of state resources to meet educational demands. The Rumie Initiative was founded to tackle these concerns. It is a non-profit organization bringing educational content to the world's underprivileged children through low-cost technology. The Rumie Initiative's vision is to redefine the way education is provided, and through this, significantly reduce poverty and drive economic development. The primary advantage of The Rumie Initiative over all other educational technology solutions is that its content is specifically tailored to meet the local educational needs and curriculum standards. Utilizing the vast reserves of free online updated educational content available today; these android driven tablets are an affordable and intuitive way to deliver pre-loaded content without the requirement of internet access. Through mass global volunteerism, The Rumie Initiative collaborates with educators in choosing appropriate educational content and distributes content-loaded tablets through local Non-Governmental Organizations, communities and government entities. The Rumie Initiative has started a program of trials around the world and recently received a positive response at a Computer - Based Math Education Summit in New York hosted by UNICEF from November 21st to 22nd 2013. The initiative was first launched in Haiti on 25th October 2013 and has since, been gaining momentum, currently exploring opportunities in Sub-Saharan countries such as Ghana, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, South Africa and Nigeria. This paper focuses on The Rumie Initiative's unique business model to reach the masses, emphasizing issues relating to the power of volunteer ism, the forging of strategic development partners, and content-oriented technologies in increasing access to education.