Helping caregivers foster learning at home in Kenya

Providing information about the benefits and quality of education to caregivers is a “great buy”, according to the Global Education Evidence Advisory Panel. There are promising signs about interventions that use technology to help caregivers support children as they learn.

When the Keep Kenya Learning (KKL) campaign approached us with their idea to leverage tech tools and resources to support home learning during Covid-19 school closures, we saw a great opportunity: we could test ways of reaching learners where they are.

The key question brought to us by the KKL team was: what’s the best way to engage and support caregivers so that they effectively foster learning at home?

They came to us with a large menu of options, ranging from learning resource platforms, SMS campaigns, radio programing, bespoke apps and more, sourced from over 40 partners who were already signed up and convinced by the campaign’s mission. Their combined resources and network meant we could reach millions of caregivers, but the foundation of the model was still missing: what’s the most effective way to reach these caregivers, and when we do reach them, what are we reaching them with?