At ProFuturo, 75% of the teachers say that they’ve modified their educational activities with technologies and resources

In a world in which technology is advancing by leaps and bounds, education cannot lag behind. ProFuturo, an ambitious educational project promoted by Fundación Telefónica and La Caixa Foundation, which is celebrating its 8th anniversary this year, is demonstrating how technology can be a powerful ally in the educational transformation. In 2023, with a focus on improving the digital and curricular skills of students and teachers around the world, this programme contributed to introducing innovative methodologies to improve the students’ learning in over 5,000 schools in 39 countries around the world.

DIGITAL AND CURRICULAR SKILLS

During the third quarter of 2023, ProFuturo conducted the annual ProFuturo Survey of the coaches (245), teachers (14,700) and students (76,300) participating in the programme, with responses that shed light on its positive impact. The data concentrate on the development of digital and curricular skills, particularly mathematics in Peru, reducing absenteeism, increasing the motivation to attend class, attention, improvements in learning and teachers’ methodological competences.

Digital and curricular skills. 76% of the teachers have observed a significant improvement in their students’ digital skills, while 73% report progress in their curricular competences. These data are a testament to how the integration of technology into the classroom can significantly enhance learning.
Reduction of school dropout rates. 91% of the students state that the programme has increased their degree of motivation to attend school. This increased motivation is reflected in a reduction of school dropout rates, with 83% of the teachers reporting greater attendance.
Effort, motivation and attention. Technology not only enhances the learning experience, it also increases the levels of effort and attention among the students. A remarkable 95% of the students say they make more of an effort thanks to the programme, while 80% of the teachers have observed improvements in terms of the attention and discipline in class.
New educational activities. 75% of the teachers say that they’ve modified their educational activities with the technology and digital resources.

75% of the teachers say that they’ve modified their educational activities with technology and digital resources

THE WAY FORWARD

ProFuturo aims to contribute to narrowing the education gap through technology. The data in the 2023 Survey display significant progress and highlight the programme’s potential to further transform education on a global scale. With every student driven to attend school, every teacher trained to use the new technologies and every community involved in the sustainability of the project, ProFuturo can contribute to improving access to future opportunities wherever it operates. The evidence suggests that technology can play a crucial role in improving the students’ skills, motivation, attendance and attention.

“Education is the pillar upon which progress is built. For eight years, at ProFuturo, based on our innovative approach and commitment, we’ve been ensuring that this pillar is strong and accessible to everyone, wherever we operate. Each story featuring learning and motivation reminds us that the future of education begins every day and that it’s the responsibility of society as a whole, which is why we’re working with numerous public and private partners and constantly seeking new support for the cause”, emphasised Magdalena Brier, managing director of ProFuturo.

TRAINING AND EDUCATION: THE KEY TO SUCCESS

Ongoing teacher training is a cornerstone of ProFuturo. In 2023, 275,087 teachers were trained online, with a completion rate of 74.5%. The quality of this training is highly rated, with the overall satisfaction among teachers amounting to 76%. Moreover, half of them report improvements in their digital and methodological skills, enabling them to implement new educational practices in their classrooms.

Alumnos con su maestra de la comunidad rural de Pacchanta (Cusco, Perú) beneficiarios del programa educativo ProFuturo

Students with their teacher from the rural community of Pacchanta (Cusco, Peru), beneficiaries of the ProFuturo educational programme

IMPROVEMENTS IN MATHEMATICAL SKILLS

One of the resources this programme provides for teachers is the Mathematics ProFuturo tool, designed to develop the cognitive processes of students aged eight to twelve. It has been a particular success in countries such as Peru, Chile and Brazil.

Together with the annual teacher survey, a sample of 214 schools in Peru that used this offline tool in 2023 were asked a series of specific questions about Mathematics ProFuturo. The replies of the 830 teachers reflect high usage (almost 70% say they use it at least once a week), 75% highlight both the ease of use and usefulness of the content, 73% indicate that there is an increase in the students’ efforts when they do maths exercises and 66% say it has greatly improved the students’ skills level in maths.

In Peru, 66% of the teachers say that the students’ skills level in maths has greatly improved.

PERSONALISED LEARNING

ProFuturo, through the measuring and analysis of its impact, is demonstrating that technology can be a powerful tool for transforming education. With the implementation of the classroom and curricular content management platform, the teachers can design personalised learning experiences for their students. In 2023, more than 43,000 teachers created learning experiences and more than one million students completed activities on the educational platform provided by the programme.

8TH ANNIVERSARY

In 2016, Angola launched ProFuturo’s proposal to bring educational innovation with technology to the world’s most vulnerable schools. Since then, the project has trained 1.7 million teachers, with a direct reach totalling 4.8 million children. In 2023 alone, ProFuturo trained 342,000 teachers and 1.2 million children were beneficiaries.

Since its beginnings, its operations have been based on the evidence of progress and the results provided by continuous monitoring processes, studies and evaluations to achieve a larger social footprint.