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A group of villagers in discussion
Photo: Zehad Al Mehedi

Advancements in Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in the 21^st century have turned people’s dreams into reality by paving the way for new possibilities. Nations worldwide are fortifying the foundations of their economies to capitalize on this opportunity. Similarly, Bangladesh aspires to actualize the dream of “Digital Bangladesh” by leveraging the vast potential of ICT to align with Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). Yet, attaining sustainable development would be impossible if we do not ensure equal participation of men and women in promoting development. As a result, we strive for gender equality in all stages of sustainable development.

Effective education and training are the most significant factors for generating skilled people. To do so, researchers are constantly scrutinizing diverse areas for offering affordable and high-quality education that meets the demands of the time. Some of them give credence to “Peer Learning,” which, according to them, can aid students in learning more effectively in both conventional and online settings. The peer learning technique, or learning from peers, has already yielded positive outcomes in online training. Therefore, there is a substantial chance that the peer learning technique will assist the government in fulfilling the goal of digital Bangladesh.

Bangladesh has immense potential for online freelancing since it has many educated but unemployed youth. According to the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS), the adult literacy rate for Bangladesh had progressed to 75.6% until last year, where male adults stood at 78.2%, whereas females at 73%. However, males are more literate than females at divisional and national levels. At 6.8%, the unemployment rate for women is twice that of males.

While Bangladeshi men have made strides, women are still trying to assemble a name for themselves in the ICT-related freelance world. According to an article in the Daily Star, 89% of women studying Computer and Information Technology do not pursue a career in that field. In addition, only approximately 6 lakh women are registered as freelancers in Bangladesh, accounting for only 9% of all registered freelancers. If Bangladesh can raise women’s employment by just 10%, it will add up to 3.1% to the gross domestic product (GDP), resulting in an additional $11.3 billion in the economy, based on the GDP figure for 2021. In this case, online freelancing can play an influential role.

In Bangladesh, under the “Evaluation of the Women’s Skills Development for Freelancing Marketplaces (WSDFM)” initiative, 1,000 women were trained in freelancing to make the most of their prospects. The project aimed to empower these underprivileged women to use freelancing to bring positive changes in their lives and the country. Researchers from the BRAC Institute of Governance and Development (BIGD) evaluated this training.

Because of the nature of freelancing work, which allows freelancers to work from anywhere, women may manage household responsibilities while still earning money, resulting in reduced financial dependence on their husbands and fathers. These women want to be self-sufficient to support their families as well. According to the WSDFM study, some female trainees believe that freelancing could impact their journey of development and self-reliance.

Due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the training mode shifted to online, despite the trainees’ expectation of classroom-based learning with direct supervision of instructors. As trainees lacked preparedness to take classes online, they faced various barriers such as unavailability of the internet, lack of suitable devices, and inexperience in using technology. On top of that, some trainees found that they do not fully understand their subject matter despite three days a week, four hours of lessons, and multiple class assignments. Learning new subjects while resolving issues from prior sessions limited the scope of learning in each class, completing the syllabus in the allotted time became a challenge, and the overall teaching process was not equally effective for everyone. Some were performing very well, but many could not keep up. In brief, trainees repeatedly stumbled across online lessons, assignments, and freelancing training. Via mutual discussions, it came to the fore that these issues affect several other trainees. In their hunt for a solution, they came across the Peer Learning technique.

Peer learning is a technique of learning that encourages collaboration and teamwork to gain knowledge. Every learner is both a recipient and a donor of knowledge. All learners collaborate to identify a solution to a particular problem. Individual skills gained before or during teamwork are subsequently shared by all teammates. It is essential to mention that these trainees have never heard of the ‘peer learning’ technique. They have developed an interest in group learning and have assisted one another in problem-solving. In other words, they adopted peer learning techniques without knowing about it.

Let’s look at how these trainees have included peer learning into their learning process to see a clearer picture. Some trainees used peer learning techniques spontaneously and instinctively at first, attempting to find out and solve their challenges through informal discussions. To begin, they choose a class representative (CR) through negotiation. The instructors also encouraged the trainees in this regard. The class representative then schedules a “solution class” to solve the problems online, once a week and at a convenient time for everyone. Despite attending the online training, those facing issues with understanding freelancing-related content received assistance from relatively good trainees in this solution class. When everyone pitched in to help, activities that were tough before became more understandable.

“What is the problem in teaching others as much as I can? If we all do well together, we will all have a reputation. Our entire batch will have a good reputation. We would sit together to do similar graphics-related tasks and not waste time during class hours. Also, learn something new. Our CR used to post a link to Google Meet on our Facebook, and there we would share the problem and show it to each other. Those who had problems showed up. It felt nice. It was like a hang-out together, and the relationship between those who attended regularly developed day by day.”

According to Nasrin (pseudonym), the teaching process of the peer learning technique has benefited them to learn to freelance.

Formalized peer learning can assist learners in learning more effectively. It provides them with far more practice than traditional teaching and learning techniques in accepting responsibility for their learning and, more broadly, learning how to learn. It is not a replacement for teaching and activities developed and implemented by staff members but rather a vital addition to the repertory of teaching and learning activities that can enhance educational quality.

The experiences of trainees suggest that adopting peer learning into our educational system has the potential to improve the quality of education only if students are encouraged to engage in peer learning. Students will easily understand many complex concepts if they are introduced to peer learning. Students from underprivileged backgrounds, in particular, can benefit immensely from this. If problems are identified at each stage of the education process and remedied through peer learning, they will function equally well in digital and conventional learning and teaching processes.

Emphasizing the peer learning approach in the country’s education system can considerably improve the quality of education while making learning experiences more enjoyable. Peer learning can, as a consequence, play a significant role in implementing the SDGs and developing a digital Bangladesh.

Dipanwita Ghosh is a Research Associate and Zehad Al Mehedi is a Communications Officer at BRAC Institute of Governance and Development (BIGD).