Building out-of-school Syrian refugee children’s foundational literacy and psychosocial wellbeing through gaming apps
The Grand Challenge
A generation deprived of education opportunities and at risk of psychosocial trauma
Years of conflict in Syria has uprooted millions of people, hampering children’s access to education. More than 3.5 million refugee children were unable to attend a single day of school in 2016, and those who did attend often faced learning difficulties due to long-term stress as well as the use of educational materials in languages they don’t use or understand. A lack of basic literacy and numeracy skills among young people significantly decreases their educational progress and economic opportunities.
The Big Idea
Arabic literacy apps that address education lapses and psychosocial stress
The EduApp4Syria competition sought the development of smartphone apps that could build foundational literacy skills in Arabic and improve psychosocial well-being for Syrian refugee children who are out of or struggling in school. The prize—funded by the Norwegian government and coordinated by the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad) in cooperation with the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), All Children Reading: A Grand Challenge for Development, mobile operator Orange, and the Inter-Agency Network for Education in Emergencies (INEE)—funded two gaming apps now available for free download on Google Play and the App Store.
Prize Partners
The ACR GCD Founding Partners thank the following organizations for their collaboration on this competition.
Antura and the Letters app builds foundational literacy skills in Arabic and improves psychosocial well-being for Syrian children who are out of school or struggling in school.
Adding Marathi human-narrated audio capabilities to create accessible, grade-level storybooks that can be listened to on low cost audio devices by children who are blind/low vision
Using innovative technologies for teachers to create and translate print/braille learning materials and for children who are blind/low vision to learn braille.
Mobilizing community members to submit favorite local stories and folktales and distributing the stories, along with comprehension questions, to early grade students and their families via SMS.
Assistive technology that enables educators to easily create and publish Moroccan Sign Language (MSL) supported educational materials for students who are deaf/hard of hearing.
Transforming readers into basal electronic formats with interactive features, including multi-modal presentations that build on children’s oral Khmer language skills
Providing families in Mali with immediate access to community developed print and digital reading resources through mobile technology and local libraries
Fostering parental engagement through use of “Mundo de Libros,” a technology-based tool that matches students with grade level-appropriate Spanish reading materials that align with their abilities
Providing families with a smartphone based mobile app, based on the Marathi dubbed version of Sesame Street, (Galli Galli Sim Sim), to promote mother-tongue literacy skills
ACR GCD Alumni, Little Thinking Minds' grantee journey is one of four detailed Case Studies that demonstrates key learning about thematic priorities for the USAID Meta Evaluation of Grand Challenges
The Grand Challenge is concluding 12 years of funding and testing innovative EdTech solutions and approaches to increase reading outcomes for marginalized children in low-resource contexts
The app, funded through the EduApp4Syria Prize, was nominated for and received awards celebrating innovation and achievements in the development process