PESHAWAR: Basecamp Peshawar, a co-working and incubation centre, in collaboration with Ilm Ideas2, an NGO, arranged an Education Innovation Challenge (EIC) here to hunt innovative ideas to reform the education system from KG to class 10 under the K10 Project in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

Talking to media persons, Basecamp programme manager Neelam Azmat said, “K10 was the first and lone project of its type in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

It aimed at bringing best social entrepreneurs of the region in an effort to find most creative solutions to problems in education sector. For this purpose we have run campaigns in all universities of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan.”

“On the first day of EIC, 30 ideas were pitched. Out of which the judges short-listed 10, of which three were selected on the final day of EIC. We will incubate them for three months in Basecamp Peshawar,” she added.

Faisal Khan, CEO Peshawar 2.0, which aims to make Peshawar valley city of tech, design and art said: “We need advancement in education sector through technology. At the current speed we would reach an educated Pakistan in decades.”

KP Information and Technology Board Managing Director Dr Shahbaz said, “We are trying to do many such projects to empower youth and improve governance through technology. “

KP secretary science and information technology Mohammad Salim said on the occasion: “I am impressed to see youth pitching such innovative ideas. Our youth have potential and we would see more of such programmes.”

During the challenge, three ideas were presented. Presenting her idea named scanimation, Syeda Maheen Shah pointed out that most of their science lectures were boring because of the concepts being difficult to understand through textbooks. She said scanimation explained the basic science concepts through 2D animations. This will not only help students in learning faster but also increase their level of interest in science, she said.

Shahabuddin, Syed Umar and Hafiz Irfan - a team of three members pitched the idea of ‘science on wheels’. They want to make a mobile lab that will be fully equipped and provide lab facilities to schools at their doorsteps. These labs will have skilled professionals.

Afaq Qarnain, a medical student from PMC, focused on children’s time utilisation and preventing them from distractions. He pitched the idea of an app ‘Qabil Bano’, which will provide parents an opportunity to activate school mode on their cell phones.

The school mode will allow children to access video lectures and notes. After watching video lecture, the child will take a quiz and upon successful completion of quiz, he/she will have access to movies/cartoons.

Published in Dawn, October 6th, 2016