Firm offers free school ebooks, revision papers

School children in a class. FILE PHOTO | NMG

By LYNET IGADWAH
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Summary

• That learning has moved online in the wake of the coronavirus (Covid-19) is no news.
• President Uhuru Kenyatta recently ordered schools shut to mitigate the spread of the highly contagious disease that spreads through droplets from coughs and sneezes of infected persons.
• The challenge now is in accessing learning materials for learners as they play catch-up for the reminder of the school term.
• To ease the pressure, education tech-solution Snapplify is offering 49,000 e-books and revision materials to as Kenyans for free.

That learning has moved online in the wake of the coronavirus (Covid-19) is no news.

President Uhuru Kenyatta recently ordered schools shut to mitigate the spread of the highly contagious disease that spreads through droplets from coughs and sneezes of infected persons.

The challenge now is in accessing learning materials for learners as they play catch-up for the reminder of the school term.

To ease the pressure, education tech-solution Snapplify is offering 49,000 e-books and revision materials to as Kenyans for free.

The books include readers in English and Kiswahili while the revision materials comprise past papers from the Kenya National Examinations Council (KNEC).

“We have revision materials and marking schemes for 8.4.4, Cambridge and CGC curriculums,” said Snapplify account manager for Kenya Joan Muse.

The online distributor also stocks Competency Based Curriculum (CBC) and 8.8.4 books that are available at subsidised prices.

Currently, the online shop has CBC books from 12 publishers all whom it says are accredited by government to supply the market. Accredited publishers are listed in an official roster known as the Orange Book.

“We are currently in negotiations to have Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) materials on our platform too,” she said.

Aside from e-book and revision materials, Snapplify offers interactive content in subjects such as Maths, Physics, Chemistry, English and Accounts.

For instance, in Biology, there is a 3D video that takes the learner through the digestive tract from the time food enters the mouth up to when it is fully digested and waste exits through the anus.

Currently, some 555 schools have registered on the platform to aid learners keep track with school work.

“We have seen an increase in uptake the number of schools that are willing to utilise our platform,” said Ms Muse noting that the uptake was slow before the Covid-19 pandemic.

Aside from schools, Snapplify whose catalogue is about 300,000 books, serves corporates.

Users only need to download the app at no cost to be able to access the learning materials.

Because of Covid-19, teachers and students are suddenly compelled to use technology as they teach and learn.

The government has scaled up online and electronic delivery of lessons for learners following the pandemic that has disrupted the school calendar.

The Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD) announced that it has expanded the existing broadcast for schools.