South African social enterprise Paper Video today launches to market its microSD cards which give access to videos of experienced teachers explaining solutions to exam past papers, aiming to help those students who need extra tuition.
The Paper Video microSD cards can be inserted into any Android device or Windows computer, and gives direct access to experienced teachers explaining the solutions to questions from past exam papers in maths, physics, accounting and life sciences (biology), for grades 10, 11 and 12.
The cards do not require an internet connection, and do not use data.
The startup says its mission is to make excellent teaching and extra learning support accessible to everyone.
“Many of the learners who most need extra tuition cannot afford it, because of the cost of private tutors. Technology now makes it possible for a much higher proportion of students to get the support they need for the specific problems they’re struggling with, including the opportunity to connect with a real, experienced teacher,” says Paul Maree, mathematics teacher and co-founder of Paper Video.
Paper Video conducted a trial of its grade 12 maths materials across 55 schools in the Western Cape in 2015, and a following independent study found the schools which received the sponsored materials improved their 2015 NSC Maths results almost four times more than schools that did not.
The solution was initially conceived of as an online platform and mobile app. However, the founders realised this was exclusive to those with access to internet or data services, and as such was unaffordable to many.
“We realised from the start that if we only provided online resources, we would exclude many learners from benefitting from our resources,” said Chris Mills, co-founder and architect of Paper Video.
“That’s why we’re so excited about the microSD cards. With so many learners in South Africa from all socio-economic groups having their own smartphones, the cards make it possible for everyone to have a good teacher in their pocket”.
The videos are used in conjunction with a booklet containing the exam questions. Using data, students can also comment on videos to ask questions, and the same teachers presenting the videos will respond.
The cost of Paper Video packages vary according to how many videos and subjects the user wants to access. A workbook costs ZAR200 (US$12.8), on top of which comes the cost of the microSD card – the smallest of which costs ZAR100 (US$6.4), while the most expensive is a ZAR300 (US$19.2) 32GB card.
Resources for grades 8 and 9 are planned to be released later this year.
