Edutech

Samvaad Helped Vodafone Foundation Overcome its Digital Roadblock

  • Backend

    Laravel

  • Frontend

    Angular

  • Mobile Framework

    Android

  • Machine Learning

    AWS

"SamVaad is a bespoke platform that allows NGOs to pick their preferred language, which they would like to use on the application. Once the user has chosen the preferred language, heshe can access different sections of the application, which include coursework, video, and audio lessons in hisher elected language."

Introduction

"The Oxford dictionary defines communication as a means of imparting or exchanging information by speaking, writing, or using some other medium. If communication is not relayed correctly and effectively, chaos will reign all around us."

A good example of such miscommunication can be that of a person looking for a video tutorial on YouTube. Upon searching the video tutorial, the person will receive a number of results in English and also other languages.

Now, if the person is fluent in French rather than English or another language, it is more than obvious that he would choose a video in French. Why does heshe do that? For the simple reason that heshe can understand and follow the instructions more clearly.

Though the saying goes, “Actions speak louder than words”, it cannot apply everywhere. A listener or receiver of the message must be able to perceive what the speaker or sender of the message is saying or doing for communication to be complete. If not the result could be getting the wrong task done or having the person lose interest in what is being said altogether.

A difference in language is the most obvious barrier to communication because two people speaking different languages cannot communicate with each other if neither of them understand what each is saying.

Learning Management System

"Organizations that mainly work on imparting knowledge, via Learning Management Systems (LMS), to employees and customers, find this barrier to be a major setback because they require to work with people coming from different backgrounds."

This is why, most organizations are looking forward to have a multilingual learning management system to conduct employee training and education programs.

Manual learning and training programs in organizations can be a cumbersome task and that is why there is a need for a convenient way to access all the information in a program, in much easier ways.

An LMS allows learners to be registered and to get their learning tracked and recorded. This way, the process of studying becomes easier, which in turns makes it easier for people to grasp the concepts that are taught within a program.

Hand in Hand India, is one of the many NGOs that has been through this dilemma. Let us have a look at the problem areas that the organisation was going through and how they overcame it, as we move ahead.

Reaching Out - The Challenge

"Hand In Hand India, a not-for-profit organization committed to the cause fighting poverty and creating sustainable livelihoods, needed a development partner to provide them with an edge to their Digital Learning Program for the rural population in South India."

The organization is known to regularly conduct training programs for rural people, topics spanning many topics like health, health, environment, computer skills, adult literacy, and refresher courses on self-help group modules. The organization’s Skills Development and Training Center, mainly implemented in areas of South India, is facilitated with computers and the training programs are usually conducted through visual communication methodologies. One of the organization’s goals is to bridge the gap of social inequality between urban and rural residents in terms of access, usage, and knowledge of Information and Communication Technologies, thereby also reducing the inequality by promoting Technological Inclusion of Rural Residents. However, to do so, Hand in Hand India required a Learning Management System that could help them reach out to effectively create educational programs for the rural population of South India. As such, a need for a mobile app made sense as the penetration of smart apps is very high, even when we count in rural areas. Other than that, Hand in Hand India also saw the need for creating learning materials with videos to teach beneficiaries to leverage mobile and internet technologies so that they could enhance both their professional and social life. The organization’s digital awareness facet was aimed to address the digital divide in the rural areas, but the solution was still to be implemented.

SamVaad - Bridging Communications

"Hand in Hand India, upon analyzing the technological needs, decided to collaborate with Bluelupin, a software development company, specializing in mobile apps and enterprise cloud based web development, to launch SamVaad."

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SamVaad is a bespoke platform that allows NGOs to pick their preferred language, which they would like to use on the application. Once the user has chosen the preferred language, heshe can access different sections of the application, which include coursework, video, and audio lessons in hisher elected language.

SamVaad consists of numerous sections, arranged in hierarchical order, making it easy for learners to access different modules in a simple and straightforward way. Furthermore, the application is secured and highly regulated, designed specific to an organization, thus giving access only to those who have permission to use it.

Let us have a look at how SamVaad’s Learning Management System helped the NGO, Hand In Hand India, overcome it’s obstacle in reaching out to the rural population.SamVaad worked on the problem areas that the organization’s digital initiative was facing, providing them the solution they were looking for.

SamVaad offered Hand in Hand India with the following features:

  1. With SamVaad, it was now possible to easily create learning material with systematic hierarchy, one following the other, in the order of Course, Chapters, topics, and content.
  2. The platform provided beneficiaries with an easy-to-use way of creating highly engaging learning material with building blocks like video, illustrations, audio, textual content, quiz, and simulators.
  3. SamVaad works is a multilingual learning management system, which supports regional languages. This means that the module takes into consideration the different languages and cultures represented in every organization, thus allowing a user to pick the language that they would like to use on the application. Furthermore, the platform offers complete offline functionality to support any limited internet connectivity, ensuring that the user can continue with their work, uninterrupted. 4. The SamVaad platform supports windows desktop app, Android phone, and tablet apps.
  4. The app is a highly scalable cloud-based solution to reach and engage millions of users.
  5. The platform is secure for users and tutors alike and cannot be accessed without permission. This met the security demands required for Hand in Hand, keeping all their sensitive data safe and sound from intrusive hands. Other than offering these features, Bluelupin went a step further and created learning material on Digital Learning for the organization, helping them in their learning process. The learning module consist of:
    • Seven Chapters
    • 26 high definition Animation videos (total of 90 minutes)
    • Learning material, all designed in magazine style for both digital (PDF), and printed format.
    • The user has the option of choosing any of the 5 languages offered, which are English, Hindi, Tamil, Kannada, and Oriya.

Result

The result of this collaboration provided by Bluelupin, via SamVaad, to Hand in Hand India was a success, helping them to reach out to a greater number of the population in South India with their Learning and Development Tools. Due to the application’s multilingual features, participants are more involved than ever, paving the way for the rural population to gain the right type of awareness and skills for everyday.