E-learning solutions provider One on One Education Limited is readying its latest learning management software, Teacher Availability Solutions (TAS), just in time for the new school year.

According to One on One, the solution, which will be rolled out across 100 schools in Jamaica, “leverages technology, expert teachers and facilitators to deliver highly engaging and quality lessons”. Subjects offered as part of the programme include mathematics, English, Spanish, physics, biology, chemistry, and information technology.

“The TAS, an integral part of the One Academy ecosystem, has been meticulously developed over the last 24 months, in collaboration and consultations with various principals, teachers, and other education stakeholders and agencies islandwide. This investment reflects One on One’s unwavering commitment to addressing the pressing teacher shortage challenge that has been widely reported, and to transform the classroom for our nation’s teachers and students,” One on One shared in a release on the Jamaica Stock Exchange website.

The company has invested $250 million into the solution, which includes the establishment of a 6,000-square-foot content delivery studio in the Corporate Area from which lessons are streamed into the classrooms across participating schools, each of which is equipped with 86-inch smart interactive whiteboards, One on One’s Classroom in a Box device, dedicated Internet connectivity and equipment to address any instability in Internet and electricity.

To ensure stable Internet connectivity One on One has partnered with Cable & Wireless Business Solutions to enhance each school’s infrastructure.

While the solution has been touted to solve the issue of teacher shortage, CEO Ricardo also told the Jamaica Observer that the solution also serves to address the gaps in the academic offerings in all schools at the secondary level.

“Every school will be able to offer every subject irrespective of the supply-side issues like classroom limitations and teacher availability or [resource] capacity,” he shared.

While TAS draws on the expertise of teachers of various subjects to deliver high-quality lessons, One on One will also dispatch an “on-the-ground facilitator” to complement remote learning process. This facilitator will support the students with some individualised attention, graded assessments and examination. At the same time, the facilitator will help the school in tracking the progress of students and providing grades from the assessments and examinations.

“So, it’s a solution to extend [educational] content to all schools across the Caribbean,” Allen stated, indicating future plans to export the service to other Caribbean jurisdiction and even beyond.

Moreover, he said that delivery through TAS can be curated to address various learning styles — visual, auditory, tactile and kinaesthetic — and comprehension levels.

While the technology is only currently available at the secondary education level, the company intends to roll out the solution across all levels of the education sector. However, given the demand for the TAS among secondary schools, Allen said that One on One is looking to fine-tune the offering before expanding in primary and tertiary.

When asked what the demand was like, he revealed it has exceeded the 100 schools planned for the first phase of roll-out. And although there is demand for TAS at the primary level as well, the One on One CEO does not foresee a launch of the primary school component in less than a year, noting that securing the equipment is a major concern.

In the meantime, the company is strategising how best to offer “next generation subjects and curricula” as the policymakers emphasise the need for STEM-based learning.

“[TAS] gives us power to run programmes from anywhere in the world. So one of the partnerships we’re working on is with Microsoft, where Microsoft will be running programmes in computer science, robotics and AI right from their offices in America right down to our schools here,” Allen disclosed.

“So that’s the power of the solution: the ability to have schools expand their programmes through One on One to be able to offer next-generation subjects and curricula…So that’s the long game,” he continued.

Also, the company is exploring how the technology can be used to address special education.

Responding to Business Observer on how TAS will be monetised, Allen explained that the cost of the programme will be borne by the schools since they “would have a budget surplus” from the shortage of teachers.

“Schools are seeing this as a more viable option because they want to offer more subjects, they want to add more value to students and it helps with substitution when a teacher is out on vacation or maternity leave,” he added.

While noting that the launch of TAS is a “culmination of years of hard work, research and dedication”, One on One CEO Allen asserted that the solution will have a transformative impact.

“As early as 2019, we had an initial idea to simply connect people to large university lecture rooms with the hope of reducing the cost of tertiary education. This quickly evolved into implementing a centralised approach to education delivery for primary and secondary schools. It is truly remarkable that we can place expert teachers in a centralised classroom with the equipment and tools necessary to deliver next generation lessons to all schools,” he said.

As a part of the development process for the TAS, One on One secured a grant of $14 million from the Development Bank of Jamaica (DBJ) via its BIGEE Innovation Grant Fund in 2021. These funds were used to design the concept of the solution, which was piloted in 10 schools.

Additionally, the Jamaica Teaching Council (JTC) has been integral in the development, working through details that improved the functionality of the solution.

According to Wayne Robinson, principal of Jamaica College — one of the 10 pilot schools — the solution enhanced the classroom learning experience.

“We are very much looking forward to this solution to enhance our learning delivery in September and we only hope that this is just the beginning and that we can expand to multiple classrooms,” he stated.