Founded 2008 (2008) Location Mexico | Founder Aleph Molinari Website www.proacceso.org.mx | |
Type Non-governmental organization Mission To bridge the digital divide and provide quality education in low-income areas in Mexico. | ||
ERROR: the {{Wikify}} template is deprecated and has been deemed by the community as too ambiguous; please do not use/transclude/substitute it. Instead, use a more specific template, such as those listed in this template's documentation. The Fundación Proacceso ECO A.C. is a nonprofit organization that focuses on bridging the digital divide and providing educational tools in low-income areas in Mexico. Fundación Proacceso’s main project is the RIA (Red de Innovación y Aprendizaje), or Learning and Innovation Network, a group of digital inclusion centers that offer access to computers, the Internet and quality education.
Contents
Background
The Fundación Proacceso was created in 2008, and since then it has overseen the rapid growth and success of the RIA centers. Its first year of operation, more than 68,000 users registered at the initial ten RIA centers. Today, the RIA network consists of 70 digital inclusion and educational centers in 55 municipalities throughout Mexico.
The RIA centers offer courses on basic computer and Internet skills, English, finding work through the Internet, math and science for children, programming, photography, personal finance and more. Students can also obtain their high school, bachelor’s and master’s degrees at the RIA through an online educational platform (http://ria.org.mx/). The Fundación Proacceso also designed 21 educational video games for the Ministry of Public Education in Mexico (SEP). The video games are hosted on a free online platform called Tak-Tak-Tak (http://taktaktak.com/).
Educational Architecture and Urban Acupunture
The RIA centers and the Digital Libraries act as community spaces for shared learning and as part of the online global culture. Due to their modular and environmental architecture they were included in the OECD’s 4th Compendium of Exemplary Educational Facilities (http://edfacilitiesinvestment-db.org/facilities/38). Designed by Ludens, the RIA centers provide an environment conducive to learning through spaces that are sustainable, comfortable, secure and strategically located. The registration desks and the interior walls are built with a modular design that allows them to be easily moved, opened and closed or disassembled when changing the configuration of a center. Moreover, in order to minimize waste, the dimensions of the modules are based on the materials’ industrial measurements; this way, little to no material goes unused. The location of each RIA center is determined through an "urban acupuncture" process that analyzes population density, income levels, educational attainment levels, the location of schools and major transportation routes. This process has aided to maximize the impact of its projects. Each RIA center benefits an average of 10.7 schools in a radius of 2 kilometers and provides services to an average of 5,000 users per year. The Digital Libraries focus on the target population by being inside public schools and combing digital learning tools, fostering reading skills and providing cultural services.
Results and Impact Assessments
In seven years of operation, the projects of the Fundación Proacceso have reached more than 1,000,000 users from all ages of which more than 410,000 users have graduated from its courses. In 2011 the educational impact of Expedición RIA was evaluated by C230, a third party organization that specializes in econometrics and educational impact evaluations. The study concluded that the program Expedición RIA positively impacted children's performance by 8% in Math and by 7% in Spanish. In 2013, EGMA, an assessment designed by USAID and translated by Fundación Proacceso, was used to assess the program and demonstrated a positive impact on children's performance of 2 standard deviations, equivalent to that of a good teacher. Additionally, a Social Return on Investment (SROI) Report was conducted by students from the Wharton School of Business from the University of Pennsylvania. The study used the strictest methodology for an SROI and concluded that: For every $1 invested in the RIA, a total of $1.84 was generated in economic growth; and that women who finished the computing route at the RIA have 4 times more chances of finding work.
On 7 July 2015, Proacceso was accused by Nexos magazine of receiving $1,700 million pesos (roughly one hundred million dollars) of government funding with no transparency on how the money was spent. The director and founder of Proacceso, Aleph Molinari, wrote a letter answering the accusations which was in turn answered by the authors of the original article. When the story hit the news, the community of scientists wrote a letter urging the government to audit the use of the funds. The case was brought before the senate to investigate the use of the federal funds given to Proacceso.