App strengthens family links through educational games

AMMAN — At a time when most of the national attention is focused on the impact of formal education on children's development, no one really considers the role of parents in providing quality educational tools for their kids, a young Jordanian entrepreneur said.

Qusai Abu Shanap recalled noticing the loss of confidence of parents around him who kept asking themselves "What can I do with my kids?", noting that children tend to be stuck between school and home without the opportunity to "explore the world out there".

"We wanted to find a way to help parents reconnect with their children by spending more quality time with them through educational and fun activities," Abu Shanap told The Jordan Times at his office in King Hussein Business Park, stressing that "it is very important for children to learn outside the school in order to be prepared for the real life".

Along with Elaf Al Araj, Hana’a Alfaqeer and Abdullah Abu Mafouth, he developed SDEQ, a mobile app that aims to engage and support parents in doing entertaining age-based activities with their kids anytime, anywhere. 

"Our motto at SDEQ [or 'friend' in Arabic] is 'Be a friend with your kids', as we believe that, while parents should be as important as teachers in educating their child, they can also do this in a fun way," Araj said.

On the SDEQ online platform, creative educators — whether parents or professionals — design customised activities based on parents' engagement, children's feedback and the latest scientific studies, which are then assessed by the SDEQ team who decides how viable the activity is.

"We make sure that any activity posted on the app has been reviewed by an expert, tested by trusted parents and abides by existing child protection policies," Araj explained, noting that "anyone is welcome to submit proposals for activities and become our partner in this journey towards better education".

"The point of these activities is that they are doable anywhere by anyone. They do not require complicated or expensive material, and they are suited for any environment," Abu Shanap said, noting that the app displays games to be played in the living room, the garden, or at the mall, among other common places.

Once they log into the SDEQ app, parents select the best suited activity for them and their child by answering a few questions that help in identifying their needs.

"First, we ask for the age of the kid, as each stage of childhood has different needs and learning methods. Then, we ask them how much time they have to spend with their child. Whether it is a whole day or just 15 minutes, we believe it is important for parents to invest in daily quality time with their children. No matter how little time or how simple the activity is, it is always better to do something than nothing," Araj stressed. 

Each activity is displayed in several steps, which are illustrated through simple, user-friendly videos. 

"We look at activities on the basis of four main goals: supporting formal education, acquiring 21st century adapted skills, providing a social and emotional learning and offering developmentally appropriate practices," Araj stated, noting that all users are encouraged to provide feedback on their experience to help improve the app.

The app, which seeks to improve children's educational experience while strengthening familial ties through over 1,000 activities, also aims to help educators involved in the app progressively earn an additional income.

In 2017, Qusai was awarded the Youth for change award and received the BADIR fellowship to help him further develop the SDEQ project.