PeerEd

A mobile based peer-to-peer micro tutorship platform

Problem definition

The pass rate for Ordinary (O) and Advanced (A) level examinations is 32.8% in Zimbabwe. This is due to a chronic shortage of teachers, which causes a high student to teacher ratio and overcrowded classrooms. In turn, it leads to gaps in knowledge and low retention of information. Students then have difficulties passing their examinations. These examinations determine the selection criteria of most universities and colleges as well as the future trajectory of the students.

Solution

PeerEd is the solution! It offers a peer-to-peer subject and examination based tutorship. The first step requires both peer student and peer tutor to sign up on the platform. Subjects found in the Cambridge and ZIMSEC syllabus are presented on this platform (eg. Biology). When the peer student has a question, it can choose the subject category and ask its question through text, pictures or voice notes. The question is then automatically sent to a peer tutor who can respond with pictures, text and/or a voice note. The peer tutors are selected based on their performance on an initial entrance examination and relevant qualification in the form of diplomas and certificates The response is only sent back to the peer student when at least two tutors have themselves verified the correctness of the answer. The peer student can grade and rate the peer tutors’ response, based on the detail on the response, and this grade is then used to rank the peer tutors efforts. To incentivize the tutor’s participation, the tutors with the highest rankings based on quality and quantity will be given a mobile data bundle at the end of the month.

Why Peer to Peer?

There is a chronic shortage of teachers, therefore students are our only resource. Peer-students: similar discourse allows greater understanding. Peer-tutors: tutorship reinforces their own understanding.

Why microtutorship

We offer specialised and specific tutoring on questions and topics based on the Cambridge and ZIMSEC syllabus.

Questions most asked by clients?

List of the questions

Why Mobile App?
How do you ensure Quality Answers?
Whats in it for the Peer-Educators?
Why use students and not teachers?

Answers to the Questions

Why Mobile App?

We noticed that there is need for the Quality of education to be constantly improved and to be more personalised, so with the Mobile App we can collect data that we will use to improve the Quality of Education offered at our platform.

How to Ensure Quality Answers

We are using a flat aproach whereby Peer Educators validate each other's answers so as if it's approved by 2 tutors then the student can recieve the answer.

What do the Peer-Educators get from all this?

There should be a motivation to make the tutors contibute so, we will be giving out incentives to the tutors on a monthly bases depending on the ranking of the content produced and the quality of answers.