It is a value-added academic support service that enables teachers to access subject-matter and pedagogy experts with queries on day to day academic transactions Through the medium of the telephone the service links up teachers in remote rural areas with education experts who may be located across different places All the queries answered within 24 - 48 hours The service offers local language interaction in voice mode The system also enables the teachers to add to and build on the FAQ information that has been gathered in the LifeLines Education system It also facilitates direct access of curriculum related knowledge and queries by pupils

The LifeLines Education service has been initiated in joint partnership by OneWorld South Asia, Vikramshila Education Resource Society and Quest Alliance. The service is being piloted in the Monteshwar Block in Bardhaman district, West Bengal; soft launch of the project took place on 1st Jan, 2008.

The project area of the LifeLines Education service in Monteshwar Block comprises 13 Panchayats and 164 Villages. A total of 571 schools, including High Schools, Junior Schools, Primary Schools and ICDS Centers, have been reached as of now. The direct beneficiaries of the service stand to be approx 2000 teachers and indirect beneficiaries will comprise around 20,000 students.

How it works:

At the backend, during this period the logged query is tagged and sent to relevant experts by email or SMS for appropriate response. When the experts have responded to the query, the answer is packaged and readied in the form of a voice clip for easy retrieval by the teacher using a telephone again.

Every query after being processed goes into an FAQ databank, building up the knowledge base in the system and also aiding future reference. At a later phase the service looks at enabling collaborative knowledge development in the system, whereby teachers will also be able to respond to relevant queries posted and add to the information that comes from the experts.

Call pattern as of now:

Maximum questions relate to subjects in the elementary level - History, Geography, Physical Science, Maths – forming approx 60% of total calls Apart from academic subjects, 30% questions relate to Pedagogy and Class Room Management 10% questions relate to Policy and Administrative matters

Extension of the service:

The Lifelines Education service is now being looked at to be expanded to other states in association with other partners:

• Scale-up of the service in Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Rural Districts of Bangalore is being explored in conjunction with Education Development Center (EDC)

• The service is also being looked at to be introduced in the Udaipur district in Rajasthan in association with the Government of Rajasthan & Global eSchools and Communities Initiative (GeSCI)