CholPori hosts discussion on scaling blended learning for smart Bangladesh

CholPori, a digital learning platform, hosted a roundtable discussion on "Scaling Blended Learning for Smart Bangladesh" with key stakeholders from government, education institutions, NGOs, and the technology sector, including NCTB, a2i, UNICEF, Sesame Workshop Bangladesh, Save the Children, Plan International, ActionAid, Teach for Bangladesh, The Asia Foundation, government officers from Hathazari Upazila, Sajida Foundation, The Daily Star and USAID.

The roundtable was chaired by Rasheda K. Choudhury, ED and CEO of Campaign for Popular Education (CAMPE) and Zareen Mahmud Hosein, MD and Founder of CholPori. CholPori revealed the findings from their pilot study in 56 schools in Hathazari Upazila. During the 12-month study, CholPori observed an improvement in maths and English scores as well as classroom engagement.

The Chair Rasheda K. Choudhuri urged everyone to work on this cause together by saying, "When the teachers will say that, 'I am the solution', only then can the implementation of digital and blended education be successful. We need to work together - not just by celebrating success stories but with evidence-based advocacy. Our government is always there to listen to us, so we need to present to them our case supported with facts." She also emphasized the importance of including all the stakeholders, especially the parents in the implementation of the new curriculum. The founder of CholPori, Zareen Mahmud Hosein, expressed her hope to bridge the education gap of students all over Bangladesh by incorporating blended learning in classrooms. 

The round table discussion shed light on the importance of creating a current policy framework for blended learning for all localities. The speakers also felt that this mammoth task can only be done if the effort is collaborative and data-driven. The media representatives expressed the hope of playing a big role in sensitizing and highlighting the greater cause of the new curriculum.