World Bank EduTech Podcast

In today's special episode, we start off the year taking a deep dive into our journey as the EdTech team. We will discuss the team's evolution over time, drawing insights from the experiences of a recently departed member and the perspectives of a newcomer.

Bob Hawkins, Global Lead of Technology and Innovation in Education at the World Bank, engages in a conversation with Education Specialist Iñaki Sánchez Ciarrusta as he prepares to leave the team after over four years, and with Lucía Blasco, a former BBC World Service journalist who brings a solutions journalism approach to the team.

To learn more about Iñaki's work at the World Bank EdTech team, please visit this link: https://blogs.worldbank.org/team/inaki-sanchez-ciarrusta

If you are curious about Evoke, have a listen to this podcast episode, hosted by Iñaki (in Spanish) or read this website post (in English).

A podcast produced by ⁠Lucía Blasco⁠.

In today's episode, we discuss the vast possibilities of digital public infrastructure (DPI), to address global challenges in education and beyond. Bob Hawkins, Global Lead for Technology and Innovation in Education at the World Bank, reflects with Dr. Pramod Varma, CTO of the EkStep Foundation and former Chief Architect of Aadhaar and India Stack, on the use of this technology approach to tackle complex societal issues at scale, including how to successfully build a digital backbone for education.

To learn more about the World Bank's efforts on Digital Public Infrastructure please visit 
https://www.worldbank.org/en/results/2023/10/12/creating-digital-public-infrastructure-for-empowerment-inclusion-and-resilience 

Our blog post on how DPI supports empowerment, inclusion, and resilience can be read here: https://blogs.worldbank.org/digital-development/how-digital-public-infrastructure-supports-empowerment-inclusion-and-resilience

To learn more about the EkStep Foundation, please visit https://ekstep.org/

Relevant information on Sunbird open-source DPGs can be found here: https://sunbird.org/

Dr. Pramod Varma also participates in the People+AI community, a team of experts looking for AI strategy for India, "helping a billion people on their path to potential." Learn more here: https://peopleplus.ai/

Check out India's participation in the Open Network for Education, Skilling, and Livelihood: https://onest.network/

Here is a short video from the Foundation on Digital Economy on DPI thinking that includes an interview with Dr. Pramod Varma [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CAIj3Q7urWs] and the second part of that interview, focused on platforms to networks [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bMmKWDBG4KA]

And a podcast suggested by Dr. Pramod Varma: 'Decoding Digital Public Goods & Digital Public Infrastructure.' Listen here: https://open.spotify.com.mcas.ms/episode/2VcHqdm1I7E6LmgYM3mgmB

A podcast produced by Lucía Blasco.

In today's episode, we discuss the promises and challenges of EdTech interventions in East Asia and Pacific countries, including the scale, dosage, and heterogeneity of impact to evaluate interventions, and how they can be applied both in the region and globally.

Cristóbal Cobo (Senior Education Specialist at the World Bank EdTech team) speaks with Noah Yarrow (Senior Education Specialist at the World Bank), Cody Abbey (World Bank Consultant and PhD Psychology Student at Stanford University), and Sharon Shen (World Bank Education Global Practice in East Asia and Pacific Region).

Yarrow, Abbey, and Shen used global and regional data to show that it is possible to use EdTech to improve student learning in EAP. In a new report, they present evidence that the broadcast/dual teacher model often supports leading student learning gains, while other approaches, such as assistive EdTech, show promise. What are the recommended improved approaches for future research to evaluate EdTech interventions? And what are the challenges? Listen to our podcast to learn more.

The report 'Using Education Technology to Improve Student Learning in East Asia Pacific: Promises and Limitations' can be downloaded here:

¿Cómo emplear la tecnología en los procesos de aprendizaje para fortalecer el carácter de los jóvenes y ayudarles a desarrollar habilidades como la empatía, la perseverancia, la gratitud o la generosidad? ¿Qué podemos aprender de las técnicas utilizadas hasta ahora? En el episodio de esta semana, exploramos esas cuestiones a través de un exitoso proyecto implementado por el Banco Mundial en Honduras en colaboración con World Vision. Gracias a este programa, 1200 jóvenes lograron "mejorar su carácter" con un enfoque constructivo y eficaz mediante la plataforma Evoke y Youth Ready.

Iñaki Sánchez Ciarrusta conversa con Marcony Meza, coordinador del proyecto; Héctor Eduardo Ruiz, especialista en evaluación de procesos; y Lourdes Martínez, quien inicialmente fue una de las jóvenes participantes y luego se convirtió en una "dinamizadora" (impulsora) del programa. El objetivo: fomentar cualidades humanas para desarrollar confianza a través de la educación, las habilidades laborales y la capacitación empresarial.

Para obtener más información sobre Evoke: 

https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/edutech/brief/evoke-an-online-alternate-reality-game-supporting-social-innovation-among-young-people-around-the-world

Para conocer más sobre World Vision Honduras:

https://www.worldvision.hn/construccion-del-caracter-en-jovenes

Today, we explore whether virtual and XR laboratories are an option to give students in developing countries pedagogical experiences necessary to develop practical skills.

Hallie Applebaum (World Bank) speaks with Robert Dean (Associate Professor of Motion Arts Design and Virtual/Augmented Reality at Namseoul University in Korea), Jimmy Vainstein (Senior Program Manager leading the Word Bank’s program on interactive media with a focus on developing XR solutions for development), Marjorie Chinen (Education Specialist and focal point for AR/VR on the World Bank EdTech team), and Diego Angel-Urdinola (Senior Economist and Global Lead for the World Bank’s Skills Global Solutions Group and Manager of the Active Training Using Virtual Reality Program, ActiVaR).

There is a strong need to provide students pedagogical experiences necessary to develop practical skills in education and workforce development programs, especially for training programs that require laboratories, such as auto-mechanics, nursing, and welding. Providing hands-on experiences and proper and up-to-date content allows students to learn technical skills, however this remains a critical challenge, mainly in developing countries. A potential solution to this is digitalization of laboratories. Employing non-immersive or immersive VR can enable learning experiences in a simulated or artificial environment so students can have personalized learning experiences.

Our knowledge pack, a short comprehensive guide, can be downloaded here: https://thedocs.worldbank.org/en/doc/e441582311a6fa4678abb243416f2589-0140022023/original/KP-VirtualLabs-WFD-September6.pdf

Read our blog 'Unleashing the metaverse for skills and workforce development': https://blogs.worldbank.org/education/unleashing-metaverse-skills-and-workforce-development

Today, our World Bank EdTech team's Robert Hawkins and Cristóbal Cobo speak with the EdTech Hub, a joint initiative of the World Bank, UNICEF, and Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to do academic research about the role of technology in education.

We previously spoke with the EdTech Hub's Tom Kaye, Global Country Engagement Lead, and Haani Mazari, Pakistan and Bangladesh Country Lead, about the organization's work. You can listen to that episode at https://open.spotify.com/episode/1u0gPFXOVzWqgHBfJ9e9J9?si=D-9DrgZFTMyOH9Ild4Mogw.

Today, Robert and Cristobal continue the conversation with Verna Lalbeharie, Executive Director of the EdTech Hub, and Jamie Proctor, EdTech Hub Country Lead for Tanzania, about how the organization is supporting edtech policies and projects. You can learn more about the EdTech Hub at https://edtechhub.org.

Related Resources:

Continuity Stories: https://blogs.worldbank.org/education/ensuring-learning-continuity-during-covid-19-related-school-closures-lessons-remotehttps://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/edutech/brief/lessons-for-education-during-covid-19-crisis-continuity-stories

Education and Technology Readiness Index (ETRI): https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/education/brief/edtech-readiness-index

Empowering educators and learners: Insights and strategies from the EdTech Readiness Index: https://blogs.worldbank.org/education/empowering-educators-and-learners-insights-and-strategies-edtech-readiness-index

Teachers play a critical role in the introduction of adaptive learning, and technology in general, in public education systems. Today, World Bank Senior Economist Juan Baron speaks with Amy Bellinger (Education Commission), Haani Mazari (EdTech Hub), and Sophia D'Angelo (World Bank) discuss the role of teachers in delivering personalized learning at scale and how adaptive learning can help teachers in enhancing student learning. 

Learn more about the team's work at https://blogs.worldbank.org/latinamerica/teachers-and-technology-together-improve-student-learning

Our World Bank EdTech team is preparing to launch the next iteration of our EdTech Policy Academy and we'll have several Francophone countries joining us. To be a resource for our participants, today's episode is in French. Our EdTech Policy Academy is a four-week hands-on clinic to engage policymakers and educators in conversations about navigating solutions to close educational gaps and prevent learning loss. This is the fourth iteration of the Academy and today four instructors from our upcoming EdTech Policy Academy discuss in French what participants can expect. This initiative is in partnership with the Mastercard Foundation.

Dans cet épisode, Sarah Kleinmann, Christiane Voufo, Souleymane Diabate et Frederico Carvalho nous éclairent sur ce qu’est la EdTech Policy Academy, et l’orientation particulière qu’elle prend cette année en se concentrant sur l’apprentissage hybride et les compétences numériques. En qualité d’instructeurs de la session de printemps 2023, ils mettent en lumière les moments forts de l’expérience d’apprentissage qui attend les participants, ainsi que les réalisations attendues par l’équipe pédagogique.

Pour en savoir plus sur la Policy Academy, vous pouvez regarder cette vidéo: https://youtu.be/2HucrXhGl2U.

Today, we're speaking about the implementation of edtech in Korea. Korea has a world-class national digital education agency that oversees the implementation of EdTech in Korea. It's called Korea Education and Research Information Services, or KERIS. KERIS was developed to introduce innovative practices within the Korean education system, such as the cyber home learning system. Today, World Bank EdTech Analyst Changha Lee speaks with Chief Sangwoon Kim, Research Fellow Mr. Min Kim, and Senior Program Specialist Ms. Jiseon Yoo from the Global EdTech Section at KERIS.

You can learn more about KERIS at https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/26089. 

In March 2021, Cristobal Cobo, Senior Education Technology Specialist at the World Bank, spoke with Amy Klement, Managing Partner of Imaginable Futures, and Sergio Venegas Marin, Young Professional at the World Bank Education Global Practice, about monitoring countries' readiness to support education with digital technologies and the EdTech Readiness Index (ETRI). You can listen to the episode at https://open.spotify.com/episode/4bgdOg3h6xXnOypKPTQTxu.

Today, we are continuing the conversation. Cristobal Cobo speaks with World Bank ETRI team members Marie-Helen Cloutier, Emma Lambert-Porter, and Marjorie Chinen about implementing the ETRI tool in the Dominican Republic, Nepal, Ho Chi Minh City, Sierra Leone, and Niger.

Learn more about ETRI at https://documents.worldbank.org/en/publication/documents-reports/documentdetail/811011628250703800/world-bank-edtech-readiness-index-etri.

If you are interested in piloting ETRI in your country or would like to learn more, please contact the team at [email protected].