Can EdTech promote inclusion for conflict-affected children?
EdTech could reduce stigma and challenge stereotypes in communities experiencing conflict
EdTech solutions can play a transformative role in communities affected by conflict, giving children access to personalized learning opportunities even when schools are closed and infrastructure is limited. In a series last year, I spoke with experts about the EdTech solutions they had created to educate the whole child. They all agree that well-designed EdTech solutions should go beyond merely bridging academic learning gaps. But I wondered: Could EdTech also promote diversity and inclusion in the communities they reach?
Marwa Zahr, the Global Programme Coordinator for War Child’s ‘Can’t Wait to Learn’ programme, thinks so. Created to support conflict-affected children to read and become numerate in formal and non-formal education settings, the ‘Can’t Wait to Learn’ digital app is endorsed by education ministries. It can be preloaded on tablets and played offline, so children can access it even without an internet connection. The programme improves learning outcomes for children, particularly in foundational literacy and numeracy. Zahr points out that the app was designed not only to cater to diverse needs through differentiated learning pathways, but also to address stigma and stereotypes within communities. I spoke with Zahr to learn more.
Promoting inclusion and combating stereotypes with EdTech
For children who face discrimination in their communities or feel excluded in new environments, seeing themselves and their experiences represented by game characters can be empowering, Zahr believes. Children facing discrimination were involved in creating the app, participating in focus groups and workshops during development to ensure that they were represented sensitively. “Involving children affected by conflict gives them an important opportunity to shape their own narrative and representation in the game,” Zahr explains.
“Including a wider range of characters could help to combat stereotypes while fostering empathy and understanding.”
“Syrian refugee children in Lebanon participated in choosing characters for the Lebanese version of the game, including a girl in a wheelchair. In Uganda, South Sudanese refugee children and Ugandan children added characters with albinism. We also created characters that challenge stereotypical gender roles in these communities,” Zahr tells me. In Lebanon, including children with disabilities in school is still a challenge. In some learning settings in Uganda, fear, stigma and misconceptions surround children with albinism. In both countries, cultural biases prioritizing boys’ education persist, despite encouraging efforts to improve access to learning for girls. Including a wider range of characters could help to combat stereotypes while fostering empathy and understanding among children as they play the game.
Embedding inclusion into EdTech implementation
Inclusion is important not only in game design, but also in how an EdTech solution is implemented. “No matter how inclusive the design,” Zahr observes, “many challenges arise during the implementation phase.” To ensure that ‘Can’t Wait to Learn’ benefits the hardest-to-reach children, the schedule for implementing the in-class EdTech solution takes into account when those children are able to participate.
“In Uganda, we implement the programme during school hours, instead of before or after school, to avoid excluding children – often girls – who may have household responsibilities or need to take care of their siblings,” Zahr says. That also means nobody has to make an extra journey to school to take part, which would exclude children who live far away and can only travel in once a day. “We regularly engage the communities we reach, promoting gender inclusion and active support for children with disabilities,” she adds, “ensuring that all young learners have equitable access to the programme.”
“In Lebanon, the programme takes place in the afternoons so that children can join after they finish working for their families,” Zahr explains. “To allow more girls to participate, we also bring the programme to selected refugee settlements, providing tablets pre-loaded with the app. That enables girls who are not in school to access informal education. We work with educational authorities to accommodate different circumstances and make sure that no child is left behind, focusing especially on those who are hardest to reach.”
“Inclusion is important not only in game design, but also in how an EdTech solution is implemented.”
Leaving no child behind
In conflict-affected areas, making sure that EdTech reaches all children is a challenge. “The best way to reach more children who need quality education is through the community,” Zahr says. That is why the programme is always co-designed with communities to suit their needs. “When communities are entrusted with putting into practice EdTech solutions, co-created with local stakeholders, and endorsed by the government, it empowers them to broaden a programme’s reach. Institutionalizing the programme in governmental schools in Uganda is one way to ensure its sustainability. This process is currently underway, and once it is complete, we aim to scale ‘Can’t Wait to Learn’ to reach children all over the country through the formal education system.”
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