Studies have shown that games improve reading and visual processing abilities. Learning through games can as well lead to greater retention of information while engaging students who would otherwise not actively participate in conventional classroom learning.
In Nigeria, SolveEducation is working to bridge the literacy gap and promote long-term education by engaging students through its Dawn of Civilisation (DawnofCiv) gaming app.
About SolveEducation..
Founded by Oladimeji Ojo in 2019, the Ibadan-based edtech startup was established to redefine learning for students through gaming.
In an interview with Technext, Ojo revealed that the edtech is focused on enhancing literacy among young people in Africa.
Africa generally has a learning problem because students are not learning in a sustainable way. We want to change the way young people learn so that learning is sustainable and life-long.
Ojo Oladimeji, CEO SolveEducation Nigeria
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“We wanted to leverage actual gaming because most young people are drawn to games,” he added.
SolveEducation eases learning for students by programming what students learn from books into games. Ojo believes that what students learn via gaming will be retained over a longer period of time because it is motivated by a fun activity.
The edtech operates a Business to Business (B2B) model, working mainly with schools and other non-profit organisations to educate students and young people through its AI-powered games.
We employ the Fourth Industrial Revolution technologies – artificial intelligence, machine learning and big data as well as actual gaming and social media elements to change the general perception of knowledge acquisition.
Oladimeji Ojo, CEO Solve Education Nigeria
While speaking on funding, Ojo disclosed that the startup has been bootstrapped since its inception. He however mentioned that the company is working to raise funds from potential investors to scale its innovation.
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According to him, SolveEducation has catered to over 33,000 learners and worked with up to five (5) schools and non-profit organisations in Nigeria.
The startup plans to expand to other countries in Sub-Saharan Africa including Cameroon, Kenya and Uganda.
DawnofCiv App Gamifies Learning for Students
The Dawn of Civilisation app gamifies local educational content provided by schools for students to learn in an exciting way.
DawnofCiv app incorporates English as a default subject for students to improve their writing, speaking and reading skills.
Schools can upload their syllabus content to the platform in any of various subjects including Mathematics, Biology, Economics and other science/arts subjects. Students can then proceed to the DawnofCiv app and select the loaded subject.
They will have to enter a unique custom code provided by the school to grant them access to play the games and learn content topics. Parental guidance is integrated into the app which allows parents to control the amount of time their children expend playing the games.
16 games are currently available for students on the app. These games are Copy Cat, Hello Cafe, Typing Time, Robot Factory, Tick Talk, Brain Battle, Word Snap, Fix the Mix, Copy Parrot, Flying Robot, Factory Card, Speak Racer, Chat Time, Eye Spy, Judge Me and Talk N Go.
Each game offers a different set-up and students can select whichever one is best suited to their gaming strengths. For instance, the Speak Racer game for English speaking requires a student to pronounce listed words correctly. Each correct pronunciation makes the car move faster.
The DawnofCiv app also has a scorecard feature which records the performances of a student over the entire course of any games played. Schools and parents can check scorecards to track a student’s progress per time.
Dawn of Civilisation app can be downloaded for Android and iOS on Google play and App store. You can also get the Windows version here.