GetBundi Platform Targets Youths for STEM Learning in Africa
Funmi Ogundare
GetBundi, an educational technology platform, is set to equip African youths with high quality, accessible and affordable Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education and STI digital skills.
The new edtech platform, a product of Wings of Justice Limited, is aimed at refocusing Africa’s education towards STEM and digital skills as a way to lift millions out of poverty.
Speaking at the unveiling ceremony, Osita Oparaugo, CEO/founder of GetBundi, noted that the idea of the platform sparked from an understanding that only countries with STEM-enabled citizenry can achieve meaningful development.
According to him, “Singapore used science and technology in moving from a developing country to a developed one. China went from having a no-flush problem to being a global leader in science. These countries have flourishing economies as a result of the critical role scientific and technological advancements have played.
“What China and Singapore have achieved in less than 50 years, Africa can also attain using STEM Education and STI skills acquisition, especially when one considers the abundance of human capital and the resilient nature of Africans, especially the youths.”
He emphasised the need for the African youths to be empowered by an understanding and appreciation of science and technology so that young people can harness STEM skills to overcome the many challenges facing the continent.
GetBundi’s focus is also on secondary education, as Oparaugo said there are currently over 1,008 hours of audio-visual content on the platform covering six years of secondary school work using the West African curriculum.
“Our STEM education is West African curriculum-based, it is purposed for post-primary school students from JSS1/Year 7 to SSS3/Year 12, and covers subjects such as Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics, ICT, Data Processing, English Language, etc. There is also revision for competitive examinations, in particular, SSCE for up to three years with monthly live question and answer sessions,” Oparaugo said.
The founder projected that the platform would support and upskill 10 million Africans in the next 10 years through STEM and STI digital skills acquisition via a strategy tagged, ‘The GetBundi Vision 2032’.
He said that GetBundi is not intended as a replacement for the traditional method of teaching or physical secondary school, but as a supplement that can be used as a teachers’ aid, to support continuous learning in-school students and as a study guide for out-of-school students/homeschoolers.
He disclosed that GetBundi is working to include three years of JAMB, IELTS, and TOEFL revision classes, as well as Science, Technology and innovation skills in its next product deployment. “The STI skills would include video editing, digital marketing, graphic design and coding courses, and users who successfully complete a course and its accompanying assignments would earn a diploma.”
The Programme Coordinator, Juliet Ijeh said the initiative is to get STEM learning across as many youths as possible irrespective of their location, especially with the high level of insecurity across Africa which has made learning in schools more difficult.
“This product will make innovative learning attractive to young minds such that even after secondary school, some of them can decide to be entrepreneurs, or go into creative and productive activities,” she said.
