The first attempt of its kind to bring best practice pedagogy, interactive e-learning and text-based content and resources on core conservation topics to Sub-Saharan schools and school clubs.
Powering conservation education programmes for kids
The iAfrica Foundation has initiated an ambitious new project, iLearnabout, having seen a need whilst working on our other projects. iLearnabout will provide engaging, relevant, age and culture-appropriate content which schools, teachers and other interested parties can access FREE online. It will be available in print format and for offline use on tablets, computers, projectors and mobile phones.
Topics will range from Water and Sanitation to Sustainable Agriculture and Wildlife Conservation and be gender-neutral and developed mindful of basic numeracy and literacy challenges and will be aligned to the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Each iLearnabout topic explores global issues through multi-media examples and local investigations. Children then choose and carry out local projects linked to the topic. In this way children develop knowledge, values and competencies to become actors for change.
Awareness – Understanding – Investigation – Decision – Action
This content will be designed to supplement not displace existing elements of national curricula and will be taught as extra curricula lessons outside of school hours.
iAfrica intends to work with a wide range of stakeholders including national education and conservation authorities, schools and NGOs to ensure the teaching materials are shared as widely as possible through existing channels including after school clubs and local NGO and community initiatives.
iLearnabout gains recognition
The iAfrica Foundation is honoured to be mentioned in Professor Sir Partha Dasgupta’s Review on the Economics of Biodiversity, commissioned by the UK Government, where we are credited with addressing the lack of conservation education in Africa. UK Aid has quoted iLearnabout as ' an innovative and potentially game-changing project'. Read more >
“With Kenya’s rapidly growing ICT space, the digital conservation education curriculum will not only give conservation educators uniform content, but will also provide the much needed conservation education source materials for schools with no access to conservation educators, this is an exciting opportunity for conservation educators like me who hold the belief that education is the single most important element in improved environmental protection and conservation. The challenge packs ensure that the learners put in practice what they have learnt. These skills will be with them even when they are through with school and will easily remember and apply them in their adult life.”
Dr. Margaret Otieno
National Coordinator/CEO
Wildlife Clubs of Kenya
We would like to hear from any NGO or educational group who would like to use the free content.
"Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world." Nelson Mandela
Our goal is to provide high quality education materials which enable teachers and others to engage and inform children about key conservation topics that affect their daily lives but are not typically well covered in schools. The environmental and economic short- and long-term effects of this gap in the education of African children needs to be tackled now so future generations have a better understanding of what is at stake and what needs to change. We recognise this alone will not solve the major environmental challenges that countries in Africa and indeed throughout the world face but education is nonetheless a vital component when it comes to equipping future generations with the knowledge needed.
iLearnabout will provide a comprehensive, immersive and positive learning programme designed to inspire and enable practical action for conservation.
Helping bring global goals to education
“…It addresses a very important need to create exciting educational materials for use by children, to support the realisation of improved environmental awareness and knowledge about conservation. I also appreciate the idea that using a digital format will engage children in a new way, using technology that is fast spreading through our communities, even in rural areas. I also note that the content will be available to organisations like WESCZ free of charge, which will be welcome.”
Patrick Shawa
National Coordinator Wildlife and Environmental Conservation Society of Zambia
Demonstration Stage
We have developed samples of the iLearnabout education packs in order to assess usability, content, and layout of the packs working with conservation and educational organisations. Feedback has been extremely encouraging with widespread praise of the materials and ideas developed so far, and at the same time endorsing the need for a digital conservation programme.
Take a look at the short clip below, from the video demo which samples one of the digital learning modules: The Importance of Biodiversity
Some comments on the demo materials
“The resources are very suitable for children and the content resonates very well with what we use in our schools’ animal welfare clubs, and are very well done.’ The fact that digital packs can be downloaded and used offline is key especially in areas where consistent power supply is a challenge.”
Purity Karuga, Research and Development Director, Africa Network for Animal Welfare, Kenya
“I think the greatest strength of these formats is the ability to illustrate key concepts, making it much easier for students to visualise the topic. This is particularly important in Government classroom settings where they have very few, if any, visual aids.”
Corey Jeal Chipembele Wildlife Education Trust
“The resource is not only for students and teachers but for parents, grandparents and anyone needing to teach children.”
Chris Eksteen, Education and outreach manager, Cape Leopard Trust, South Africa
Our thanks to Wildlife and Environmental Conservation Society of Zambia, Wildlife Clubs of Kenya, Africa Network for Animal Welfare, Conservation Lower Zambezi, The North Luangwa Conservation Programme, Chipembele Wildlife Education Trust, Cape Leopard Trust.
iAfrica Foundation is seeking funding support for this project
Donating from the U.S.
American Residents can donate to the iLearnabout project in US Dollars through our fiscal partner Empowers Africa:
Support us
To support us from any other country please get in touch:
With thanks to Elephant Charge for kindly donating towards our pilot project development. www.elephantcharge.org
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We are pleased to add a new topic on Wildlife Conservation to our range of freely available materials! Find out mor… https://t.co/zL4yOzMX00
The iLearnabout website is now available with up to date details of this project
Learn more about iLearnabout at www.ilearnabout.org
Banner photo credit: Francois D’Elbee