High Touch High Tech for All

Challenge

Research has shown that personalized learning improves learning outcomes by adapting instruction to students’ needs. Artificial intelligence (AI)-powered adaptive learning technologies can now support teachers in personalizing education while ensuring every child receives the support they need to thrive. The need for scalable solutions of this kind is urgent: 70% of 10-year-olds in low- and middle-income countries cannot read or understand a simple text.

The Learning Generation Initiative at EDC has worked with governments and partners to pilot the High Touch High Tech (HTHT) approach. They select locally available technology that delivers adaptive content and assessment aligned with national curricula, allowing students to learn at their own pace. Teachers then use real-time data to tailor instruction and foster critical thinking, collaboration, and social-emotional growth. When combined with teacher training and support, HTHT has the potential to accelerate learning at scale.

Key Activities

The project is carrying out the following activities:

• Conducting two pilots targeting math learning in the Philippines and Cambodia, generating evidence by rigorously testing HTHT to provide data-driven insights
• Working with local partners to build the conditions for scale

Our Impact

• In a previous pilot in Vietnam, after just one semester, HTHT students’ math scores improved by 0.436 standard deviations, the equivalent of two years of learning.
• In Uruguay, HTHT students’ math scores increased by 0.33 standard deviations, the equivalent of 1.63 years of math within one year.