Around the world administrators, teachers, parents, and students are beginning to step back into the classroom. Many are excited to “get back to normal” and forget about online learning. In most schools in Peru and Bolivia, due to isolated locations and lack of access to hardware, online learning was never an option to begin with. Nevertheless, as we move back towards in-person learning, it is important to take the lessons learned with us. The education community should be better now at engaging students, including parents, and incorporating local culture into the curriculum.
In that line of thought, what role can online platforms and technology play in rural indigenous education going forward in Peru and Bolivia?
One idea we are pursuing is using e-course platforms on our Alma app to include more teachers in our training and accompaniment programs. Though we don’t have the logistical resources to go out and visit all of the 30,000 teachers who participate in our training programs in 2021 and 2022, we can include many of them in e-courses, online forums, and less frequent in-person trainings throughout the year.
We are currently piloting our e-course format in Bolivia, and believe that in 2022 we can include many more teachers in both Peru and Bolivia in order to expand our reach beyond what we will still do in person.
The tech can’t get into the communities, but the teachers and Alma can!