Empowering access to education in the age of globalization | Aaron Friedland | TEDxDTU

Summary

Aaron Friedland discusses empowering access to education and eliminating illiteracy in the age of globalization. He highlights the historical shift from nomadic lifestyles to settled agriculture, emphasizing the importance of education in modern society. Friedland shares his experiences in Uganda, where he founded the Walking School Bus to improve educational outcomes through technology and global collaboration. He calls for collective action to ensure all children have access to education, illustrating the impact of his organization's work through a reading program that connects students across the globe.

Takeaways

• 🌱 The Agricultural Revolution marked a pivotal shift from nomadic hunting-gathering to settled farming, leading to the development of villages and cities.
• 🏫 The establishment of communities fostered the creation of schools, emphasizing the importance of education for societal success.
• 🌐 The concept of 'jugaad', or frugal innovation, is celebrated as a key aspect of problem-solving and resourcefulness in the Indian context.
• ⚡️ Benjamin Franklin's kite experiment in 1752 demystified the myth of lightning being a divine force, symbolizing humanity's progress towards understanding and utilizing natural phenomena.
• 🎵 Adele's 2015 song 'Hello' reaching millions within 24 hours exemplifies the interconnectedness and reach possible in today's globalized world.
• 🤝 A personal encounter with John Mathews led to the rapid development of an educational app, demonstrating the power of collaboration and technology in addressing educational challenges.
• 📚 The 'Walking School Bus' initiative aims to bridge the gap in educational access, particularly in rural areas, by leveraging technology and community partnerships.
• 🌍 The script highlights the stark reality that 60 million primary school children worldwide are not in school, with distance being a significant barrier for 26.3 million of them.
• 📈 In India, a significant improvement in primary school completion rates for female students was observed from 60.5% in 1999 to 92.5% in 2007, reflecting the impact of educational policies.
• 🔄 The 'flip access' movement encourages individuals to raise awareness about educational inequities by sharing inverted images on social media, symbolizing the need to 'flip' the script on access to education.

Q & A

What significant change occurred in human society around ten thousand years ago?

The Agricultural Revolution took place, which led to the end of the previously nomadic lifestyle of hunting and gathering, and the beginning of settled farming.

How did the Agricultural Revolution impact human lifestyle and social structure?

It led to the development of rural villages and later cities, which in turn led to the establishment of schools and a society where education became a prerequisite for success.

What is the meaning of 'jugaad' in Hindi and how does it relate to the speaker's discussion?

Jugaad means 'frugal innovation' in Hindi, and the speaker, an economist, appreciates this concept as it aligns with his discussion on empowering access to education through innovative and resourceful means.

What historical event involving Benjamin Franklin is mentioned in the script, and how does it relate to the theme of demystifying myths?

The script mentions Benjamin Franklin's kite experiment in 1752, where he demonstrated that lightning is electricity and not a God-driven event, thus helping to demystify myths and promote a more globalized understanding of natural phenomena.

How did Adele's song 'Hello' exemplify the interconnectedness of the modern world?

Adele's song 'Hello' reached 27.7 million people within 24 hours of its release, showcasing the global reach and interconnectedness made possible by modern technology and media.

What is the 'walking school bus' and how does it aim to empower access to education?

The 'walking school bus' is an organization founded by Aaron Friedland that aims to empower access to education by connecting classrooms in rural Uganda with those in other parts of the world to improve learning outcomes.

What is the current global estimate of primary school children who are not in school, and what is a significant barrier for some?

Currently, an estimated 60 million primary school children are not in school, with 26.3 million of them facing distance as a barrier to education.

What is the illiteracy rate among adults in India, and how does it compare to the global illiterate population?

In India, 287 million adults are illiterate, which accounts for 37 percent of the world's illiterate adult population.

What motivated Aaron Friedland to found the 'walking school bus' organization?

Aaron Friedland was motivated by his experiences in Uganda, where he witnessed the challenges students face in accessing education, such as long distances to travel and lack of nutrition, and his desire to make education more inclusive.

How does the 'flip access movement' intend to raise awareness about education access?

The 'flip access movement' encourages individuals to take upside-down photos and share them on social media with the hashtag '#access', tagging friends to do the same, to raise awareness about the barriers many students face in accessing education.

Outlines

00:00

🌾 The Agricultural Revolution and Its Impact on Education

The speaker, Aaron Friedland, begins by discussing the Agricultural Revolution, which occurred ten thousand years ago, as a pivotal moment that shifted humanity from a nomadic lifestyle to a settled one, focusing on farming. This transition led to the development of rural villages and eventually cities, which in turn led to the establishment of schools and the importance of education. Aaron emphasizes the significance of education in modern society and introduces his mission to empower access to education and eliminate illiteracy in a globalized world. He highlights the concept of 'jugaad,' a Hindi term for frugal innovation, and uses historical examples, such as Benjamin Franklin's kite experiment, to illustrate humanity's progress and interconnectedness. Aaron also shares a personal anecdote about developing an educational app with John Mathews, showcasing the power of collaboration and innovation in addressing global challenges.

05:01

🌟 The Globalized World and the Plight of the Uneducated

Aaron delves into the concept of globalization, emphasizing how it has made the world more interconnected and how each individual can influence change. He points out the stark reality that 60 million primary school children worldwide lack access to education, with 26.3 million of them affected by distance as a barrier. Using India as a case study, he highlights the country's high illiteracy rates, particularly among adults, and the disparities in literacy rates that persist. Aaron shares a personal story from his time in rural Uganda, where he witnessed the power of collaboration in creating interfaith schools and the impact of education on economic prosperity. He also discusses his own struggles with dyslexia and how experiential learning helped him succeed academically, a concept he applies to his work with the Walking School Bus organization.

10:03

📚 The Walking School Bus: Bridging the Education Gap

Aaron introduces the Walking School Bus, an organization he founded to empower access to education. He shares the story of JJ Kaki, a Jewish coffee farmer in Uganda who, after witnessing the 9/11 attacks, returned to his country and collaborated with Muslim and Christian farmers to form a cooperative. This collaboration not only improved economic conditions but also enabled children to attend interfaith schools. Aaron was inspired by this and sought to further bridge the gap by connecting classrooms in rural Uganda with those in other parts of the world. He explains the symbiotic relationship between communities, likening it to a lichen, where two different organisms come together to thrive. The Walking School Bus implements programs such as reading initiatives, where students record books as audiobooks for others to listen to, fostering a sense of global community and improving learning outcomes.

15:05

📈 The Flip Access Movement: Raising Awareness for Education

In the final paragraph, Aaron calls for action, urging everyone to get involved in improving access to education and literacy. He introduces the Flip Access Movement, a campaign that uses social media to raise awareness about the challenges students face in accessing education. The movement encourages participants to take upside-down photos and share them on social media with a specific hashtag to symbolize the need to 'flip' the current state of education access. Aaron invites the audience to join this movement and contribute to the cause, emphasizing the collective power of individuals to drive change and improve educational opportunities for all.

Keywords

💡Agricultural Revolution

The Agricultural Revolution refers to the transition of human societies from nomadic lifestyles to settled farming communities. This shift occurred approximately 10,000 years ago and marked a significant change in human history. In the video, the Agricultural Revolution is mentioned as a pivotal moment that led to the development of permanent settlements, which in turn facilitated the establishment of schools and the formal education system we know today.

💡Jugaad

Jugaad is a Hindi term that encapsulates the concept of frugal innovation, which is the practice of finding low-cost solutions to problems using limited resources. The speaker, Aaron Friedland, expresses his admiration for this concept as an economist, highlighting its significance in the context of the video's theme of empowering access to education. Jugaad exemplifies the innovative spirit that can drive educational initiatives in resource-constrained environments.

💡Globalization

Globalization is the process by which the world's markets, cultures, and communications become increasingly interconnected. The video discusses the impact of globalization on education, emphasizing how it has enabled the rapid dissemination of ideas and information. The example of Adele's song 'Hello' reaching millions in 24 hours illustrates the interconnectedness and the potential for global influence, which can be harnessed to improve access to education worldwide.

💡Literacy

Literacy is the ability to read and write, and it is a fundamental skill that enables individuals to access information and education. In the video, the importance of literacy is underscored by the discussion of the significant number of adults who are illiterate, particularly in India. The speaker's organization, the Walking School Bus, aims to improve literacy rates by empowering access to education, which is a critical step towards social and economic development.

💡Experiential Learning

Experiential learning is a pedagogical approach that involves learning through experience and the application of knowledge in real-world contexts. The speaker shares a personal story about how experiential learning helped him grasp mathematical concepts by applying them to a fundraising project. This approach is integral to the work of the Walking School Bus, which seeks to create meaningful, hands-on learning experiences to enhance educational outcomes.

💡Poverty Trap

The poverty trap is a situation where individuals or communities are stuck in a cycle of poverty due to various factors such as lack of education, limited access to resources, and systemic barriers. In the video, the speaker reflects on how, without access to education, many children are at risk of falling into the poverty trap. The work of the Walking School Bus aims to break this cycle by providing educational opportunities that can lead to economic empowerment.

💡Interfaith Schools

Interfaith schools are educational institutions that promote understanding and cooperation among students of different religious beliefs. In the video, the speaker mentions the establishment of interfaith schools in Uganda as a result of collaboration between Muslim, Christian, and Jewish coffee farmers. These schools serve as a model for fostering unity and mutual respect, which are essential for creating inclusive educational environments.

💡Symbiotic Relationship

A symbiotic relationship is a close, long-term interaction between two different species where both benefit. In the context of the video, the speaker uses the analogy of lichen, a symbiotic relationship between algae and fungus, to describe the partnerships the Walking School Bus forms between different communities. These partnerships are designed to be mutually beneficial, enhancing educational outcomes for all involved.

💡Flip Access Movement

The Flip Access Movement is an awareness campaign initiated by the speaker's organization to advocate for better access to education. The movement encourages individuals to take upside-down photos and share them on social media with the hashtag '#access' to symbolize the need to 'flip' the status quo and improve educational opportunities. This campaign is an example of leveraging social media and collective action to drive social change.

💡Walking School Bus

The Walking School Bus is an organization founded by the speaker, Aaron Friedland, with the mission to empower access to education. The name is inspired by the concept of a 'walking bus,' where children walk to school in a group led by an adult, ensuring their safety and promoting community engagement. The organization works to improve educational access, nutrition, and curriculum in rural areas, particularly in Uganda, by forming partnerships and leveraging technology.

Highlights

The Agricultural Revolution marked a shift from nomadic hunting and gathering to settled farming, leading to the development of villages and cities.

The establishment of rural villages and cities facilitated the creation of schools, making education a key to success.

Jugaad, or frugal innovation, is a concept that signifies resourceful problem-solving in the face of scarcity.

Benjamin Franklin's kite experiment demystified the myth that natural phenomena were God-driven, promoting a more globalized human identity.

Adele's song 'Hello' reaching millions within 24 hours exemplifies the interconnectedness of today's world.

The speaker, Aaron Friedland, discusses empowering access to education and eliminating illiteracy in the context of globalization.

John Mathews, co-founder of Cookbook, collaborated with Aaron to develop an app to improve literacy in Uganda.

60 million primary school children worldwide are not in school, with 26.3 million affected by distance as a barrier.

In India, 287 million adults are illiterate, representing 37% of the world's illiterate adult population.

The story of JJ Kaki, a Jewish coffee farmer in Uganda, highlights the power of interfaith collaboration for peace and education.

The Walking School Bus organization aims to bridge the technology gap in rural Ugandan classrooms.

Experiential learning, as experienced by the speaker with Shoshana Burton, can make education more inclusive and meaningful.

The symbiotic relationship between disparate organisms in a lichen serves as a metaphor for the collaboration between communities in education.

The reading program by the Walking School Bus involves students recording books to create audiobooks for partner schools.

India has seen a significant increase in primary school completion rates, especially among female students.

The speaker invites the audience to participate in the reading program and the Flip Access movement to raise awareness about education access.

Transcripts

you know ten thousand years ago a

remarkable discovery took place some

clever individual realized that you

could take a seed planted in the ground

and grow a crop all of a sudden the

previously nomadic lifestyle of hunting

and gathering came to an abrupt end as

we traded in our bows and arrows for

shovels and hoes now the Agricultural

Revolution deconstructed perceptions of

hunting and gathering as the norm and

reconstructed a collective identity as

humanity started living in more

localized environments and in this

ironic twist of living in a localized

environment and trying to tame and

domesticate wheat we actually came to

domesticated ourselves as we now had to

care for this wheat now we stayed in one

location to farm which eventually led to

the development of rural villages and

later cities which are where schools

started to develop now later we

developed a society in which education

became a prerequisite for success the

same education that too many around the

world are not able to access good

evening everyone

my name is Aaron Friedland and it's

truly a pleasure to be back in India

thank you so much for having me today

today I'll be discussing empowering

access to education and eliminating

illiteracy in the age of globalization

but before we begin I'd like to share

with you how it is that we as humanity

have arrived at this incredible juncture

at a time in which each and every single

one of us are capable of influencing so

much change so who here has heard of the

word jugaad raise your hand if you've

heard the word yeah okay now jugaad in

Hindi means frugal innovation right and

as an economist I absolutely love this

word

and who here knows what this image is

I'll give you a hint

all right so great we all know that it's

not the Indian kite-flying holiday of

Makar Sankranti yeah okay so in this

image what we see is Benjamin Franklin

and his son in 1752 venturing into the

eye of the storm with nothing but a kite

a spool of silk and a key and in using

these three very little items they bring

lightning from the sky to the ground and

essentially taemi electricity that's all

of a sudden where humanity realizes the

potential of electricity and what's

incredible about this image is that it

was not until this point in time in 1752

that we understood that these events

like lightning and thunder were not God

driven events until that point we had

believed that they were completely moved

by God and what's remarkable about this

is that Benjamin Franklin

single-handedly demystified these myths

and in doing so he helped create a more

globalized identity for Humanity now

following the same notion and following

the same movement 263 years later where

we continued to use electricity who here

has heard of the singer Adele have we

heard of Adele so Adele in 2015 released

a song called hello and what's

remarkable about this song is that in 24

hours she reached 27 point seven million

people and the reason that I bring this

up is because it goes to show what an

incredibly globalized interconnected

world we live in today when each and

every single one of us can have a

thought or an aspiration and reach

millions now more recently I was giving

a talk in Jabalpur and I met a

remarkable individual named John Mathews

who he's an Indian guy and he co-founded

a company called cookbook and they've

got 10 million users around the world

and after our talks John and I started

talking

and I told him about what I was doing

with my organization in terms of

empowering access to literacy and I told

him about the issues that I'd had in

developing an application to help this

process and after our talk John

suggested Aaron let's go build this app

right now let's go build the

continuation of it ten cups of chai

later five hours later sitting in the

hotel room him and I had successfully

developed the beta version of this

application which I'm proud to say is

already being utilized by our partnered

communities in Uganda to improve

literacy and I'll show you this app a

little bit later but it just goes to

show how quickly each and every single

one of us can influence so much change

now in realizing this opportunity I

think each and every single one of us

also need to realize our obligation to

ensure that we are moving humanity

onwards and upwards

together and I think it's beautifully

depicted by the space shuttle actually

leaving Earth's atmosphere now in the

age of globalization when each and every

single one of us can learn from places

like Khan Academy YouTube and get online

degrees how many students how many

primary schools children do you think

currently lack access to education 10

million 20 million 30 million what do

you think any anyone so today 60 million

primary school children are not in

school and of those twenty six point

three million are not in school due to

distance as a barrier to education so

this means that these students want to

access education they simply cannot and

you know through my work overseas I've

seen the drive that so many have to go

to school with many walking over five

kilometres to and from school and if we

as students have this drive to get to

school and still twenty six point three

million black access I think we

collectively need to start doing a

better job of empowering this access now

when children aren't afforded access to

education it has a profound impact on

literacy let's take a more localised

look right here in India so in India

287 million adults are illiterate and

just to put things in perspective that's

37 percent of the illiterate population

of the world of the illiterate adult

population of the world

moreover we see a humongous disparity in

terms of literacy and this is something

that we need to be address we need to

address and before I explain the the

small work that we are doing to address

this issue I'd like to share a story

with you about what got me involved in

this type of work and I'd like to take

you back with me to a place in rural

'mobile Uganda I'd like to share a story

with you about a village and how it

profoundly impacted my life it's the

reason I'm here with you today as the

founder of the walking school bus an

organization that empower access to

education the man that I'm shaking hands

with is JJ kaki and JJ kaki has a

remarkable story in 2001 JJ was visiting

the United States specifically New York

when he witnessed the atrocities of the

World Trade Centers

he understood the destruction that

religious intolerance was capable of and

he realized that if an event like this

could take place in his hometown it

could take place in the US then it most

certainly could take place in his

hometown of Uganda he ended up going

back to Uganda and as a Jewish coffee

farmer he approached his Muslim and

Christian coffee farming counterparts

and he explained the need for them to

collaborate and they did collaborate and

they found a delicious peace coffee

cooperative and in doing so they

achieved higher levels of economic

prosperity in the region and above that

all of the children of these coffee

farmers started going to schools

together which became interfaith schools

and I'm proud to say that these are the

schools that we as an organization work

with in Uganda now while visiting Uganda

I was struck by the the incredible

collaboration that I'd witnessed between

JJ and the farmers and JJ and the

schools but I realized that this

collaboration could be taken one step

further to improve student learning

outcomes

I saw a disparity that existed between

the technology that

utilize by the villagers and the lack of

technology that was implemented in the

classrooms and I understood that if we

could connect these classrooms in rural

Uganda to classrooms in my hometown of

Vancouver Canada and elsewhere then we

could truly improve learning outcomes in

a mutually beneficial way so what is my

motivation to be here today why do I

care about access to education to

experiences profoundly changed my

thoughts on education one of them was in

Uganda where I saw the distance that the

students had to travel to get to school

I saw that how they would arrive in

class hungry as they lacked access to

nutrition a prerequisite to education

and I sat in the back of the classrooms

and watched how many of the students

were just as disengaged as I once had

been it could have been because they

were hungry tired or had learning

disabilities

it was myriad reasons that we're

influencing this later in India my

girlfriend and I were would walk around

all over and the most memorable aspect

of this entire trip were the remarkable

children who would approach my

girlfriend deny and speak to us in four

to five different languages they'd speak

to us in English in French in German in

Italian and as a student with dyslexia I

always struggled academically and let's

just say I learned to read a little bit

later in life and I looked at these

children with admiration and I

understood that I never would have been

one of them had I grown up in the same

socioeconomic class in India my parents

would not have been able to justify the

educational expenditure and I likely

would have been stuck in what we call

the poverty trap now my introduction to

academic success only came a little bit

later on I was introduced to a

remarkable teacher named Shoshana Burton

who taught me that the education that

was espoused in class could be made more

inclusive for me through something that

we call experiential learning she taught

me that I could take what I had been

taught in math class for example and

apply it to a committee which raised

funds

for students of the Darfurian genocide

and all of a sudden I had to learn how

to make sure that I was most efficiently

allocating these funds that we'd raised

for these students to ensure that we

could buy them as many solar cookers as

possible and these previously elusive

mathematical models that I had never

understood started to make sense and

they did because there was incentive for

me to learn because there was a need for

me to understand them and it's these

same mathematical models and it's these

same experience alerting models that

we've taken and that we've applied at

the walking school bus to ensure

mutually beneficial learning outcomes so

we've got quite a few engineers here

tons of science backgrounds does anyone

here know what this is does anyone know

so this is called the lichen has anyone

heard of the lichen all right so a

lichen represents the symbiotic

relationship between an algae and a

fungus

now usually these are previous are

disparate organisms they grow in

different locations but a lichen

represents the rare and unique

opportunity for these two organisms to

come together and in doing so to thrive

and cohabitate in an environment that

they otherwise would never be able to

and as an organization this is exactly

what we do we take previously

disconnected communities whether they're

in Canada or Uganda or India and we

partner them together and in doing so we

reckon that we make our students better

off than they otherwise would be now one

example of this is our reading program

and how our reading program works is

that students have the opportunity to

read and record books that they read in

class for example if you're a grade 11

student that may be in 1984 if you're a

younger student that may be a book like

the giving tree' we break these books

down into many chapters and in class you

read and you read them aloud they're

recorded as an audio book that is made

by students for students this audio book

is then sent overseas to our partner

schools with the attached PD

and overseas the students have the

opportunity to listen and read

simultaneously which acts as a great

teaching tool improves enunciation and

provides a connection between these

communities that otherwise wouldn't

exist now we work in a few other areas

and in the interest of time I won't go

into great detail but what we've done is

we improve access to education to

nutrition and to curriculum and in doing

so with these three facets we believe

we're providing a more comprehensive

holistic approach to education now it's

through organizations like ours and

organizations around the world and this

paradigm shift that we have in the way

that we view education that we have

really have improved the way that

students are accessing education and

right here in India is a great example

so in 1999 sixty point five percent of

Indian of Indian primary female students

would complete their education and I've

used female students as a baseline

because we know that in India they're

less likely to go to school now in 2007

we see a remarkable jump to ninety two

point five percent and in 2009 India

enacted the right to education Act which

made primary education compulsory once

again drastically bolstering rates of

participation so we're seeing an amazing

move forward in the way that we're able

to learn but we still do have a long way

to go and as an organization there are

two things that each and every single

one of us can do to improve access to

education and literacy and I'd actually

like to ask you guys to help me get

involved in this so one example is our

reading program that I mentioned a

little bit earlier so this is what Jon

actually helped me put together in the

span of just a few hours and what you

may be able to see here is that you can

read the book now you've got the

recorder going

you can upload this file to our server

and we do the rest you just pick a book

that you like it's really easy and I

would love for people rather than just

sharing things on social media and

liking things on social media like we

usually do

take out yourself and do something

meaningful with it and now you can join

our flip access movement which aims to

raise awareness surrounding the current

realities that too many students face

when accessing education and how our

flip access movement works is as follows

you take a photo upside down all right

whether it's you doing a handstand or

whether you just take a photo like your

profile pic and you flip it upside down

the next step is you upload it to

Facebook or Instagram using the hashtag

access and you tag 3 friends to do the

same and the third step is that you join

our movements and you help us flip

access to education one foot at a time

thank you very much everyone it's really

incredible to be back in India and I

appreciate how