2017 ICT4D Conference

The Ghana Reads project leverages the transformative power of technology to leapfrog existing challenges that prevent children from learning to read. World Vision is working with Open Learning Exchange to implement this project in five districts; Kintampo South, Sekyere East, Afram Plains, Fanteakwa and Krachi West. Project components include teacher pedagogical capacity building, integration of technology, and a coaching model. The hardware which includes Basic e-Learning Library (BeLL)) is an extensive offline digital library of free, high quality content, including rich multimedia educational resources, suitable for the Ghanaian context. The library is automatically updated and synchronized from a national repository of either Open Educational Resources (OER), resources developed by OLE Ghana and/or licensed for all Ghanaian primary schools when there is available internet access. Materials in the Basic e-Learning Library (BeLL) have been developed in conformity with the Curriculum Research and Development Division (CRDD) standards. Children are assigned stories and other learning tasks with the help of a content management system, and the feedback functionality in BeLL system ensures effective monitoring of children’s reading progress as well as other program activities via a Feedback Portal. In the initial scale-up in 8 schools in Afram Plains and Kintampo South, users had an increase of 9% from baseline figure of 3% on the Early Grade Reading assessment for children who can read with comprehension at grade 3. Enrollment rates in target schools increased 20%, with 12% of total transfers from other schools and 8% new entrants. Though no data was collected on attendance, teachers affirmed that school attendance has increased.. The World Bank has sponsored a team from the Gambian Ministry of Basic& Secondary Education led by their Permanent Secretary to study the Ghana Reads Project with the aim of replicating it in Gambia with World Bank support.