What the EDUaccelerator participants will work on

In September, the Generation 3.0 cycle peaks. We start the EDUaccelerator programme, which, following the example of the business world, helps organisations with effective project setup and testing. Four civic organisations and one startup will work under the guidance of experienced business and research experts to measure their impact and prepare for dissemination to as many schools as possible. 

“We create connections with experts based on the so-called theory of change, which helps organisations determine what they need to focus on the most. According to the theory, we invite experts who then accompany the organisations for three months. At the end of the EDUaccelerator programme, they have clear goals and plans in place to meet them,” explains Noro Maur, senior program manager of Generation 3.0.

At the same time, organisations are also working with researchers in education to set up impact measurement and disseminate proven, functional and effective approaches to schools.

The participants of the EDUAccelerator 2021 programme will work on the following projects:

The People in Need organisation wants to work mainly on the quality of their Global Education programme, which should bring the best possible added value for each teacher involved. The aim is also to set a sustainable financing model and establish cooperation with the Ministry of Education, Science, Research and Sports of the Slovak Republic. Peter Gažík, CEO of Telenor in Hungary and former CEO of O2 in Slovakia, will accompany the organisation on its journey as a mentor.

Teach for Slovakia covered the creation of the Informatics 2.0 project, which creates complete materials for teaching computer science at primary schools. The ambition of the project is to train 1,000 teachers in the school year of 2021/2022, of which 200 teachers focus on working with pupils from socially disadvantaged backgrounds. The organisation will work with its mentor Michal Rehúš, the founder of the Centre for Educational Analysis, to identify and reach the teachers.

The Comenius Institute, which is part of the portfolio of the civic association Živica, has teamed up with our experienced mentor Michal Csong from RonixLab. Their primary goal is to create a business plan for their portfolio of activities to achieve stable funding. They will also work on a systematic evaluation strategy and capacity building to develop and support their programme.

KUBOmedia is the first startup to join Generation 3.0. The biggest challenge for the organisation will be launching the KUBO EDU platform, which targets kindergarten and primary school teachers. During the EDUaccelerator programme, they will launch the first version of the project. Then, they will systematically collect feedback from teachers and incorporate suggestions for improvement. Their mentor, Lukáš Okál from Microsoft, will help them with content protection and creating the documentation necessary for the organisation’s application to be officially listed as a teaching aid. One of their goals, which they want to pursue as part of the EDUaccelerator, is to create a marketing strategy.

Smart Up! got into the Generation 3.0 programme on the second try, with a more sophisticated programme and vision. They want to focus on increasing the number of new teachers registered at the website they cover. They will also work with experienced mentor Martina Králová from Teron Solutions to create a map of activities for the entire school year. They will also set up internal processes and develop a plan to obtain structured feedback from teachers using the website.